Friday’s transfer deadline day arguably didn’t turn out in the way that Victor Osimhen had hoped, with the Nigerian not able to secure a move away from current employers, Napoli.
The Serie A side had already bought Romelu Lukaku from Chelsea to replace him, and the expectation was that Osimhen would sign for the Blues during the summer window.
Osimhen out of Napoli’s squad after transfer collapse
He had seemingly been courted by the West Londoners throughout the summer, but even in the last knockings of the window, a deal hadn’t been agreed.
Saudi Pro League side, Al Ahli, were understood to have agreed a deal with the Partnopei, and are believed to have offered the player himself double his €12.8m annual Napoli salary (Capology).
??? BREAKING: Napoli reach total agreement with Al Ahli for Victor Osimhen!
Club to club deal done for €75/80m total package, Al Ahli have already booked a medical.
Four year contract worth €25/30m per season net to Osimhen + RELEASE clause.
Final green light up to Victor. pic.twitter.com/EEAm9mdtgJ
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 30, 2024
Despite this, Osimhen never gave his approval to that particular deal and was obviously holding on for Chelsea.
Unfortunately for him, that game of brinksmanship backfired, as it’s further understood that the Blues offer wasn’t acceptable to him.
Therefore, as things stand on Saturday morning, Victor Osimhen is still a Napoli player, and unless a Saudi club comes in for him in the next couple of days – and he accepts – he will stay in Naples.
Victor #Osimhen stays at @sscnapoli and should be out of the squad. @SkySport
— Gianluca Di Marzio (@DiMarzio) August 30, 2024
The problem for him, as trusted Italian football journalist, Gianluca Di Marzio notes, is that he will be out of the Napoli first-team squad as a result.
Antonio Conte clearly prefers Lukaku as his main striker, which means that there is no room in the team for Osimhen unless the Belgian gets injured.
For a player that was recently the main man in the team when they won a first Serie A title for three decades, that’s an unbelievable turnaround in fortunes and fingers are surely likely to be pointed.
Quite where his career goes from here is anyone’s guess.
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