Arsenal finish Osimhen curiosity after swap deal claims
Premier League giants Arsenal have reportedly dropped their curiosity in Napoli striker, Victor Osimhen, because of his €130m price ticket amid participant swap rumours, PUNCH Sports Extra stories.
After 4 profitable seasons at Napoli, Osimhen is predicted to name time on his profession with the 2022/23 Serie A champions this summer time, as confirmed by membership president Aurelio de Laurentiis.
The Partenopei have fought laborious to maintain maintain of the Nigeria worldwide and agreed a brand new contract with their star striker final December, however his phrases solely run till the summer time of 2026.
With Osimhen’s contract additionally together with a launch clause price round €130m (£110.6m), De Laurentiis has resigned himself to shedding the previous Lille man to one in all Europe’s monetary powerhouses forward of the 2024/25 season.
Arsenal have been one in all a handful of golf equipment tipped to maneuver for Osimhen, alongside Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid, though the latter is not going to make an method as a result of latest seize of Kylian Mbappe.
It has additionally been reported that new Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca is in opposition to the signing of the 25-year-old as properly, as he doesn’t imagine that Osimhen is a striker who can hyperlink play and drop deep, which is one in all his principal necessities.
As a end result, a two-way battle may have materialised between PSG and Arsenal, the latter of whom had been apparently knowledgeable {that a} part-exchange deal involving Emile Smith Rowe and Takehiro Tomiyasu may have been their ticket to an settlement.
However, in keeping with Sky Italia, Arsenal have knowledgeable Napoli that they aren’t bowing to their £110.6m calls for, particularly after breaking their very own switch file with the £105m seize of Declan Rice final yr.
Arsenal nonetheless price the striker extremely however can not justify forking out a nine-figure charge, which can also be the case with most of Osimhen’s different suitors, so De Laurentiis could also be pressured to relent on demanding that the Nigerian’s launch clause is paid in full.
The Napoli president is now below added strain to simply accept a decrease charge for the Nigerian as a result of arrival of Antonio Conte, who desires to reunite with Chelsea’s Romelu Lukaku in one in all his first acts as head coach.
PSG are actually thought of the favourites for Osimhen’s signature, because the ex-Lille man will not be eager on transferring to Saudi Arabia, and the French champions will save €200m (£170.1m) in yearly wages now that Mbappe has departed.
Osimhen topped the Serie A scoring charts within the 2022/23 season with 26 strikes and netted 15 instances in 2023/24 lacking a big a part of the season because of accidents and the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.
