Former Manchester United first-team coach Benni McCarthy has revealed that the Africa Cup of Nations was a decisive factor behind the club’s decision not to pursue a move for Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen, despite the forward being identified as a near-perfect fit for the Premier League side.
Speaking publicly about United’s recruitment deliberations during his time at Old Trafford, McCarthy said the biennial African tournament posed a significant risk to squad continuity, particularly for a club prepared to invest heavily in a marquee striker, and ultimately led to Osimhen’s name being removed from the club’s shortlist at a critical stage.
Osimhen had emerged as one of Europe’s most sought-after forwards after a prolific 2022–23 campaign with Napoli, scoring 26 league goals to inspire the Italian side to their first Serie A title in 33 years.
His performances elevated him into elite company across the continent and later earned him the African Footballer of the Year award in 2023. McCarthy, who worked under then manager Erik ten Hag, said Osimhen was closely studied as United searched for a reliable goalscorer, stressing that, from a footballing perspective, the Nigerian striker was an ideal candidate.
However, the timing and frequency of the Africa Cup of Nations proved decisive. “If you spend £100m on a player, you don’t want to lose him for Afcon,” McCarthy explained. “I think he would have been very successful there. But it [Afcon] was a big stumbling block. Losing him for so many important matches, the team suffers not having the main striker there. So the decision was made. Literally [a] big part was because of the Afcon and Victor Osimhen’s name got scratched off – not a player of interest because of that.”
With concerns over Osimhen’s potential absence during key periods of the season, Manchester United turned their attention elsewhere and completed the signing of Danish forward Rasmus Hojlund from Atalanta for £72m in August 2023. Hojlund went on to score 26 goals in 95 appearances before later joining Napoli on loan, while Osimhen’s career took a different path.
Despite his individual accolades, the Nigerian striker eventually left Napoli, moving to Galatasaray on loan in September 2024 before sealing a permanent transfer to the Turkish champions last July.
McCarthy insisted that footballing ability and mentality were never in doubt, describing Osimhen as the type of player capable of thriving under the intense scrutiny that comes with playing for Manchester United.
“He scores goals, he works exceptionally hard, and he’s a player [who is] immune to the noise,” the former striker said. He added that the pressure of Old Trafford would not have unsettled the Nigerian forward, noting, “Playing for Man Utd won’t have a lot of effect on him because of what the boy has gone through [in] his life. Where he comes from, he’s seen way worse than this. Him not scoring for five games in a row won’t affect him. He’ll just keep going on because he knows what struggle is about.”
Despite that conviction, McCarthy admitted the decision left him conflicted on a personal level, saying, “[It] made me kind of sad as well because, my whole career, I fought to represent my country because I’m African.”
The broader issue, McCarthy argued, lies in the long-standing scheduling of Afcon, which has traditionally been staged in January and February, directly clashing with the busiest stretch of the European club season.
That reality, he said, has often made top clubs hesitant to commit major transfer fees to African players who may be unavailable for a month or more at a time. While there is change on the horizon, with the Confederation of African Football announcing that Afcon will become a quadrennial tournament from 2028, McCarthy believes the conversation should go further.
CAF president Patrice Motsepe has said the decision was taken alongside world governing body FIFA to allow the international calendar to be “significantly more synchronised,” but McCarthy feels better coordination is still needed with Europe’s domestic competitions overseen by UEFA.
Reflecting on the future, McCarthy suggested that African football authorities could have preserved the tournament’s traditional two-year cycle while adjusting its timing to reduce the impact on players’ club careers.
“I think Caf could work better with Fifa and the European community, Uefa, on when [to] stage these tournaments so that it doesn’t jeopardise players’ careers,” he said. “You [play] the tournament during the time where there’s a scheduled break in the league, or you do it in the June-July window where the season is finished. But then again, players get no break, no holiday – nothing.”