- Chelsea seems to no longer be chasing the talented Napoli star
- Osimhen’s future remains unclear amid pre-season challenges and interest from various clubs
Despite Chelsea stepping back from their pursuit, Napoli’s Victor Osimhen may still end up in the Premier League as the club turns its focus toward signing Samu Omorodion.
According to Mail Sport, Chelsea is in advanced discussions with Atletico Madrid regarding Omorodion, who is expected to cost the club around £30 million despite a modest nine goals in 35 LaLiga games while on loan at Alaves.
The transfer involving Omorodion would occur independently of Conor Gallagher’s departure, who’s traveling to Madrid for a medical before a £33.7 million transfer.
Chelsea had earlier been strongly linked with a move for Osimhen, considering a swap deal that included Romelu Lukaku plus cash.
However, Napoli insisted on sticking to Osimhen’s £111 million release clause.
Victor Osimhen faces an uncertain future at Napoli with interest from Arsenal and PSG.
With Chelsea moving on from Osimhen, Sky Italy’s Gianluca Di Marzio reports that Arsenal might pursue the Nigerian forward.
The report states that Arsenal, along with Paris Saint-Germain and clubs from Saudi Arabia, are interested in Osimhen, who netted 76 goals in 133 appearances for Napoli.
Despite the lucrative offers from Saudi Arabia, the report indicates that Osimhen is not keen on the idea of playing in the region.
The 25-year-old has yet to feature in any pre-season matches for Napoli under new coach Antonio Conte, as his stay in Italy seems increasingly likely to conclude soon.
If Arsenal activates Osimhen’s hefty release clause, it would surpass the club’s record transfer, just one year after they invested £105 million on midfielder Declan Rice.
Acquiring Osimhen would also send a strong signal from Gunners manager Mikel Arteta in his efforts to prevent Manchester City from clinching a fifth consecutive Premier League title.
Osimhen has not participated in pre-season under new Napoli coach Antonio Conte.
Arteta may require additional attacking options to challenge Manchester City for the Premier League title.
Osimhen’s addition would significantly boost an Arsenal attack that has leaned heavily on star winger Bukayo Saka’s contributions.
Last season, Arteta often had to rely on Kai Havertz, more of an attacking midfielder, or Gabriel Jesus as forwards, but neither produced the necessary goal output to dethrone City.
