According to Italian journalist Gianluca Di Marzio, Leo Ostigard is set to leave Brighton and Hove Albion to join Genoa in the coming days. He is scheduled to undergo a medical today (Monday), ahead of the proposed move to the Serie A side, which should be on a permanent basis.
The centre-back started his football journey at Norwegian side Molde, where he went though the youth ranks and earned first-team promotion in January 2018, though he made only one senior appearance for his boyhood club. He had a brief loan spell with Viking FK, before joining Brighton the following summer.
The Seagulls continued sending him out on loans, and Ostigard played for the likes of St. Pauli and Coventry. He went on a season-long loan to Stoke City last summer and made 13 Championship appearances for them this season, before being suddenly recalled to the Amex.
At the moment, the reported talks with Genoa appear the likeliest reason for the interruption of his time at the bet365 Stadium. Ostigard’s contract with Brighton expires at the end of the season, and the current transfer window is most likely the last chance the Seagulls have of getting some compensation for relinquishing his services; it’s not very likely he would accept any kind of proposal of a new deal.
The 22-year-old represented Norway at every youth level, but he is yet to make his debut as a senior international.
There are still a few minor details to be sorted out between Brighton and Genoa, but Ostigard is still very likely to be the first signing for Andriy Shevchenko’s team this month.
