Besiktas move on from Onuachu, open talks with Manchester United-linked striker

16-time Turkish Super Lig winners, Besiktas, have ended their pursuit of Super Eagles and Southampton forward, Paul Onuachu, Soccernet.ng reports.

The 30-year-old striker spent last season on loan with Trabzonspor and he quickly became a fan favourite at the Papara Park, scoring 17 goals and providing four assists in 25 games.

The Turkish side were keen on keeping the Nigerian at the club on a permanent deal, but Southampton kept raising their asking price for Onuachu.

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During the January transfer window, Besiktas enquired from Southampton about the Super Eagles striker, but the Saints insisted he wasn’t for sale.

With Southampton’s relegation now confirmed, many of their players, including Onuachu, are eyeing a summer move away from the club.

However, according to Saints Marching, Besiktas have made Ipswich Town striker, Liam Delap, their first-choice transfer candidate after growing tired of Southampton’s lazy approach in handling a potential Onuachu deal.

Onuachu has started just ten league games for Southampton this season, scoring four goals, but was never really a first choice. While the Saints had the opportunity to have sold him for about 20 million euros at the time, Besiktas’ decision to turn away from the deal hints that they’ll struggle to find suitors from the Turkish league this summer.

Like Southampton, Ipswich Town have also been relegated to the EFL Championship, but Besiktas face stiff competition from Manchester United for Delap. The Red Devils consider the Englishman as a cheaper alternative to Galatasaray’s Victor Osimhen, as they believe his wages might weigh their salary structure down.

There has been no interest from Trabzonspor in Onuachu following the way Southampton handled the transfer situation last summer.

While there’s still plenty of time for a middle ground to be reached, if no solutions are found, Onuachu will be entering the final year of his contract at St. Mary’s in the EFL Championship by August.