Chelsea's pursuit of Napoli striker Victor Osimhen has rumbled on all summer
Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca(Image credit: Getty Images)
Chelsea’s pursuit of Napoli striker Victor Osimhen has been one of the summer’s most protracted transfer sagas and as we enter the final hours of the window, the twists and turns show no sign of stopping.
The Blues have had another busy summer, installing Enzo Maresca as their new boss before embarking on another wild spending spree which has seen them sign no less than 11 new players.
Despite this latest summer splurge, the club appear to feel that they need another forward, with the Nigerian international remaining their favoured target.
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The clock is very much ticking, with the Premier League window slamming shut at 11pm on Friday evening, which means the latest reports coming out of Italy could have the Stamford Bridge hierarchy sweating.
According to Gazzetta, Chelsea have put together a proposal which matches the €70million bid that Napoli have received from Saudi Pro League side Al Ahli, who are another of the 25-year-old’s suitors.
The issue for Chelsea, the report adds, is that Osimhen’s representatives do not consider the wages on offer to be satisfactory which means that the Saudi side are now very much in the running for the player’s signature again.
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Napoli forward Victor Osimhen (Image credit: Getty Images)
Gazzetta continue that it is now up to Chelsea to up their offer to the player, or for Osimhen to accept what the Premier League side are offering, otherwise the forward ‘will listen to Al Ahli’s offer’ amid Osimhen’s frustrations with how the process is playing out with his European suitors, following Paris Saint-Germain's failed pursuit earlier in the summer.
In FourFourTwo’s opinion, this has all the hallmarks of a deal that goes right to the wire, so Chelsea supporters may need to be ready for a late night on Friday. Trying to second guess what the west Londoners are up to this summer is a fool’s errand and a last-gasp big-money offer to the player who is valued at €100million by Transfermarkt wouldn’t surprise us.
For more than a decade Joe Mewis has worked in football journalism as a reporter and editor, with stints at Mirror Football and LeedsLive among others. He is the author of four football history books that include times on Leeds United and the England national team.
