If there is one saga that has animated Italy and irradiated part of Europe, it is that of Victor Osimhen (25 years old). Announced in PSG’s sights at the beginning of the summer, the Nigerian will have liked to settle down in the French capital. Luis Enrique shattered his ambitions. The Spanish coach did not want to have a striker of his profile, and especially not at that price. Naples was asking for more than €100 million at the start of the transfer window. Gonçalo Ramos’ injury did not change anything.
For a long time, and even until late yesterday during this last day of the transfer window, there was talk of a transfer to Chelsea. A few hours earlier, an agreement had been reached with the English club for Romelu Lukaku so that the latter could join the Partenopei. The positions of the two managements seemed to converge, despite the Blues’ 40-man squad, but it was precisely with the striker that it didn’t fit. And for good reason, Osimhen would have received much less than in Italy.
Osimhen turned down Chelsea offer…
Sky Sport Italy reveals some details this morning. The contract offered was for a fixed salary of €4 million per year, plus an additional €4 million linked to Chelsea’s possible qualification for the Champions League and a certain number of appearances. This is ultimately not much compared to his salary at Naples of around €11 million per season. It took the Blues getting closer or closer to €10 million to convince the former Lille player, who therefore did not follow up.
He had, however, said yes to Al-Ahli for a contract worth €40 million over 4 years, with a clause that allowed him to facilitate a new transfer a year later (in 2025). This time, it was the two clubs that did not find common ground, and ultimately for not much. The Saudis offered €80 million, when Aurelio de Laurentiis only asked for €5 more. Al-Ahli was annoyed by this final request and finally turned to Ivan Toney, as we revealed to you.
…and Naples that of Al-Ahli
At the time of writing, Victor Osmihen is still a Napoli player where he is under contract until 2026. In theory, the Saudi transfer window can still get him out of there since the match closes on September 2. Problem, no recovery is expected. The two negotiations failed for two different reasons but with great consequence. Antonio Conte and the club are not counting on the striker, who scored 76 goals in 133 matches in Napoli, and was the great architect of the Scudetto a year ago. Osimhen is currently excluded from the team and risks waiting for the next transfer window to play…
