Chelsea are prepared to ‘pay whatever it takes’ to beat Manchester United to the signing of Napoli striker Victor Osimhen, according to a report.
Osimhen is one of the most sought-after strikers in Europe, but will not be available on the cheap.
Napoli paid around £70million to sign the Nigerian international from Lille in 2020 and are reportedly looking to receive at least £100m for him.
Osimhen’s excellent scoring return of 14 goals in 16 Serie A matches has fired Napoli 13 points clear on top of the Italian top flight.
The Naples outfit have only been champions of Italy twice in their history with their last league title coming in the Diego Maradona days back in 1990.
In fact, Gli Azzurri have only won three major trophies this century, claiming the Coppa Italia in 2011-12, 13-14, and 19-20.
With a first Serie A title in over 30 years on the horizon, Napoli will be an attractive place for players and Osimhen might not want to leave.
This puts the club in a very strong position, though Chelsea – who are reportedly interested – have shown they are very ruthless in the transfer market under Todd Boehly’s co-ownership.
The Blues could really do with an out-and-out striker with Kai Havertz currently leading the line and leaving a lot to be desired.
It is quite remarkable that Chelsea have spent over £600m under Boehly, but still don’t have an elite striker.
They signed Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang last summer, but the former Arsenal captain is likely to leave in the summer after being left out of their squad for the Champions League knockout stage.
Romelu Lukaku was also brought back to the club in the summer of 2020, though he failed to live up to his £97.5m price and is currently on loan at Inter Milan.
French attacker Christopher Nkunku is likely to move to Stamford Bridge at the end of the season, but, like Havertz, he does not really have a set position and should give Graham Potter a similar headache when it comes to starting a No. 9.
Osimhen could be the perfect acquisition for Potter’s side.
According to the Mirror, the Blues have ‘joined the hunt’ to sign the 24-year-old.
Manchester United were believed to be leading the race to sign Osimhen with a new striker top of Erik ten Hag’s summer priorities.
The report states that Potter’s side are willing to compete with United and French champions Paris Saint-Germain for the player’s signature.
‘Napoli want around £100m’, which shouldn’t be a problem for Todd Boehly…
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