Caughtoffside are reporting on the latest update in the Victor Osimhen saga, with reports now coming out of Italy which claim that the Blues are not willing to pay more than €100m for the striker.
That’s short of what Napoli have been hoping for, and we could be set for some stand-off between the two clubs. Let’s hope it doesn’t drag on until August like some of our key deals last year.
Not long ago, the Italian side had all the power, but now Chelsea are increasingly less desperate for an elite number 9, wile Napoli realise that their chance to max out the value on cashing in their player likely means selling this summer.
Nobody is in any doubt how much this team would be improved by the addition of a top class goalscorer – but is Osimhen that man, and is he that man at that price?
A house divided
Not long ago there was universal acclaim for the idea that Chelsea could sign Osimhen. A year ago we were really stuck with no scorers, and the Nigerian was firing Napoli to success across the board in a brilliant season. But two things have happened since then – Osimhen’s form has dropped off, and Nicolas Jackson has arrived at Chelsea.
Jackson is a rough diamond, and is himself something of a divisive topic. But through the season he’s shown more than enough to convince a lot of fans that he’s got the tools to be our number one, and the appeal of paying something far beyond €100m for Osimhen has diminished.
PSG have been our main rivals for the striker’s signature, and even they seem to be having second thoughts after spending so much on strikers last summer. Napoli’s plan to cash in big seems to be crumbling before their eyes, and there’s no way they’ll get the sort of money that was being talked about a year ago.
