Victor Osimhen is very likely leaving Napoli this summer, meaning that new incoming manager Antonio Conte won’t get the chance to coach him. The scoring sensation has been linked to Arsenal, and there is mutual interest; reportedly.
Sky Sports journalist Gianluca Di Marzio reports that Osimhen is eying a move to North London, as the striker will not be renewing his Napoli contract.
The relationship between player and club has been broken there for a long time already.
He has long been linked to Chelsea, as the west London club have been keen on him for quite some time. However, that interest has now cooled, according to reports.
Talks began where the potential for a swap deal, with Romelu Lukaku going the other way were discussed, but those talks reportedly went nowhere.
Chelsea certainly do need help scoring goals, but it doesn’t look like Osimhen will be their target of pursuit anymore.
The alternative, when it comes to buying a big name attacking player this summer anyway, will more likely be Michael Olise of Crystal Palace.
Of course, the competition for his services will be fierce and could thus trigger a bidding war, as Manchester United are known to be quite interested.
Getting back to Osimhen, Arsenal could use a bona fide center forward upgrade. They need a true stellar No. 9, and Football Italia has more on how and why Osimhen could be the answer.
He reportedly has a release clause in his contract that can be exercised for the low low price of £113 million. So please take a look and see if you got that amount sitting around in your account!
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to Ravens Wire, part of the USA Today SMG’s NFL Wire Network and the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated, Chicago Tribune and the Washington Times. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter.