Chelsea are reportedly tracking the situation of Napoli striker Victor Osimhen, who is contemplating potentially suing his own club.
According to 90min, Chelsea are keeping a close eye on the situation of Nigerian goal-machine Victor Osimhen, who seems set to be heading for a January exit from Napoli after the Serie A side mocked him in an extraordinary video on TikTok.
Osimhen, whose 26-goal league tally last season helped the Partenopei secure the Serie A title, the club’s first in three decades, wasted a penalty in Napoli’s 0-0 draw at Bologna over the weekend. Remarkably, on Tuesday, the club posted a video of the Nigerian striker’s failure to convert the effort from 12 yards, which featured an annoying high-pitched voice in the background screaming “gimme penalty, please.”
The bizarre video was later deleted. But Osimhen’s agent, Roberto Calenda, has threatened legal action against Napoli for mocking their own player on a public forum.
Calenda wrote on X, “What happened today on Napoli’s official profile on the TikTok platform is not acceptable. A video mocking Victor was first made public and then, belatedly, deleted. A serious fact that causes very serious damage to the player and adds to the treatment that the boy is suffering in the last period between media trials and fake news.”
The agent added, “We reserve the right to take legal action and any useful initiative to protect Victor.”
Prior to this, Osimhen hit the headlines involving Napoli manager Rudi Garcia during the 0-0 draw, with the 24-year-old Nigerian striker seen criticising his boss as he was substituted off with four minutes left on the clock. Although Osimhen later apologised, there remains some tension between the player and coach.
Amid the drama, a report from 90min has suggested Chelsea could take this opportunity to ramp up their pursuit to sign Osimhen. Following a disastrous start to the new Premier League campaign that sees them currently languish in 16th in the Premier League standings, Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino is looking for a high-profile new no. 9 to lead the line for the Blues after their goal-scoring struggles this year.
Pochettino can choose between misfiring Nicolas Jackson and young Armando Broja as his main options at centre-forward, as well as another new arrival, Deivid Washington. Christopher Nkunku was signed over the summer from RB Leipzig to add a new element to their attack, but he has since suffered an injury.
The 24-year-old was arguably the most coveted striker in the transfer market this past summer. But Napoli held firm and kept their centre-forward. However, interest in the Nigerian international from other clubs is not going to fade away ahead of the new year.
Even aside from the much-maligned fallout, the player is hesitant about extending his current Napoli contract, which will only have 18 months remaining on it by the time the next transfer window opens, which means there could be increasing pressure on the Serie A champions to cash in their star striker.
The issue is whether Todd Boehly and co. can convince Osimhen after failing to qualify for Europe and battling for consistency under Pochettino. It would also be no surprise that more big-hitting clubs have begun queuing up to sign Osimhen in the upcoming summer transfer window.
