“There is a plan B” – Trabzonspor President identifies ex-Liverpool forward as striking target following stalled talks with Onuachu

Trabzonspor President, Ertuğrul Doğan, has revealed his club is looking to bring another attacker up-front as they’re currently unable to reach an agreement with Southampton for Paul Onuachu, Soccernet.ng reports.

The 29-year-old striker joined The Saints from KRC Genk in 2022 but failed to score a single goal for them, and upon their relegation, he joined Trabzonspor, scoring 17 goals for the Karadeniz Fırtınası.

The striker is keen on joining the Turkish side on a permanent deal, and Southampton are willing to let him go, but both clubs differ in their valuation of the player. The Saints want at least €9m for Onuachu, while Trabzonspor value the Nigerian at €6m.

Ertuğrul Doğan mentioned he has no problem with Onuachu but reiterated he might have to look elsewhere if Southampton don’t budge in their ongoing negotiations.

“His family also loved the city very much. He repeated that he wanted to stay. The club slowly came down in numbers. Hopefully, we want to finish this work next week. The process progresses positively, but if not, there is a plan B. He wasn’t on the agenda, but he is an important centre-forward. We can have both. He is also a known name in the world,” Trabzonspor coach said in quotes revealed by Sports Witness UK.

Turkish outlet, Turkiye Gazetesi, revealed the striker, whose name Ertuğrul Doğan did not mention, is Divock Origi. The ex-Liverpool man spent the last season on loan from AC Milan with Nottingham Forest in the English Premier League, scoring just one goal in 22 games.

Origi’s contract with Milan runs till the summer of 2026, but an exit for the Belgian striker is not far-fetched, as he’s currently training with the U-23 team.

Divock Origi won the UEFA Champions League, the English Premier League, the FIFA Club World Cup, the FA Cup, and the UEFA Super Cup during his time with Liverpool.