Chelsea are believed to have long held an interest in Napoli marksman, Victor Osimhen, and the Blues are on the verge of finding out the Partnopei’s stance on whether they’re open to selling their star man in the January transfer window.
The Telegraph (subscription required) details Mauricio Pochettino’s need for a centre-forward, and Osimhen has shown his qualities over the past 18 months.
A fee of over £100m is likely to be required to tempt Napoli into doing business, though it could be the summer at the earliest before there’s any chance of seeing the Nigerian pitch up at Stamford Bridge.
That’s because it would appear that a contract extension with Napoli is virtually done and dusted.
“The situation is still exactly the same as I said 10 days ago guys, no changes,” Fabrizio Romano said in his Daily Briefing for CaughtOffside.
“Victor Osimhen’s new deal is almost agreed, contract until 2026, and a release clause will be there.
“Napoli president, Aurelio De Laurentiis, only confirmed on Friday what we already knew and mentioned. It will happen guys.”
Though that might disappoint the Chelsea faithful, it makes more sense to bring Osimhen in during the summer and have him fit and firing ready for the 2024/25 campaign.
The current season in terms of the Premier League title is already a write-off as far as the club is concerned, and not even Osimhen’s immediate capture would necessarily have changed that.
Given Boehly’s way of working in the transfer market, it’s highly likely that Osimhen wouldn’t be the only summer capture either.
Any disappointment that supporters may be feeling that the player isn’t coming early in the new year will surely be dissipated if the Chelsea owner pulls off another coup or two in six months time.