Napoli have stripped Victor Osimhen of the no.9 shirt amid his failed move to Chelsea.
Osimhen’s shirt will now be worn by Romelu Lukaku this season.
Lukaku was signed by the Serie A club to replace the Nigerian striker, with the hope that he would move the other way to Stamford Bridge.
However, with Osimhen’s future in limbo, the former Italian champions have decided to exile the player.
Napoli have also removed Osimhen from their official Serie A squad.
Football transfer expert, Fabrizio Romano, wrote on X: “Victor Osimhen has been excluded by Napoli’s Serie A squad list… and also number 9 will NO longer be on his shirt.
Napoli have decided to give number 9 to Romelu Lukaku with immediate effect.”
Osimhen, Chelsea, Al Ahli Failed Deal
In a dramatic twist to the 2024 summer transfer saga, Victor Osimhen’s highly anticipated move to Chelsea collapsed yesterday. The deal fell through with just two hours left before the transfer window closed, as the Nigerian forward and the Premier League side failed to reach an agreement.
Osimhen’s prospects of moving to Saudi Arabia have also evaporated. Al Ahli, a potential suitor for the Nigerian striker, chose to sign Brentford’s Ivan Toney on deadline day instead. Earlier reports indicated that Osimhen was caught between a potential move to Al Ahli and Chelsea’s proposal, which involved an initial loan deal with an option to buy. However, transfer expert Fabrizio Romano confirmed that the deal with Chelsea is now off the table, leaving the football world abuzz with speculation.
The collapse of the Chelsea deal is compounded by a significant breakdown in Osimhen’s relationship with Napoli.
Napoli had earlier agreed on a fee in the region of £67m overnight with Saudi outfit Al Ahli, but Sky Sports reported that the latter is understood to be unhappy because Napoli asked for more money for Osimhen, pushing the Saudi side toward a deal for Brentford striker, Ivan Toney, for a £40m move, with the English man having already had his medical in London on Deadline Day.
The Saudi side, known for their substantial financial backing, however, insisted that they would only sign either Osimhen or Toney, meaning that they would not be able to sign both players and Al Ahli settled for the less complex transfer, that of Toney.
Romano tweeted, “Ivan Toney to Al Ahli, here we go! The deal is completed between clubs with Brentford for £40m package. Medical done, contract agreed and Ivan will travel to Saudi this weekend to be presented. Osimhen deal is OFF today and Toney is now finally done.”
As Chelsea’s pursuit falters, other suitors like Paris Saint-Germain who were once in the fray have refused to resurface and have stayed out of the race completely as Napoli refused to reduce their asking price.
The failed move to Al Ahli League would not come as a surprise to many after the 25-year-old reigning African Player of the Year’s agent Roberto Calenda clearly stated, a few days ago, that they would not accept the move and Osimhen wants to stay in Europe.
“Osimhen is a Napoli player, with a contract recently renewed to our mutual satisfaction. He made history in blue and when there were important offers (this year too) we always accepted the club’s decisions.
“As I have already said, he is not a package to be sent far away to make room for new prophets. Victor was elected African Footballer of the Year, eighth in the Ballon d’Or, he still has a lot to say in Europe. Respect and balance are needed,” Calenda said.
The Breakdown with Napoli
Osimhen’s relationship with Napoli has been strained for some time. The friction can be traced back to September 2023, when Napoli posted a TikTok video that was perceived as mocking Osimhen after he missed a penalty. Although the video was later deleted, and Napoli claimed no offence was intended, the damage was done.
This left Osimhen who helped Napoli end their 33-year wait for a league title 2022-23 season when he was crowned Serie A’s top scorer with 26 goals furious with the Italian side.
The situation worsened when the forward removed all Napoli-related images from his social media accounts. Despite Napoli’s insistence on not intending mockery, the Serie A champions never issued an apology.
“To avoid any potential exploitation of the matter, Napoli would like to explicitly state that the club never intended to offend or make fun of Victor Osimhen, who is an asset to the club.
“Over the course of the summer, Napoli rejected all offers to sign the striker – firm proof of the club’s appreciation of him. On social media and TikTok particularly, expressive language is used in a light-hearted and playful manner. In this case, involving Victor, there was no intention of mockery or derision. If Victor was in any way offended, this was not at all in the club’s intentions,” Napoli posted on its official website.
Osimhen’s agent, Calenda threatened legal action, but this only ended up with the 25-year-old signing a new deal that runs until 2026 with the Italian club, a move that has come under scrutiny by many of the Nigerian footballer’s fans.
This was followed by another fallout with agent Mamuka Jugeli, who represents Napoli’s poster boy, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia after Jugeli suggested that Osimhen would leave the Serie A side for Saudi Arabia at the end of the 2023/24 season despite signing a new contract with Napoli.
The Nigerian international gave a strong-worded reply embellished with swear words to Jugeli’s claims, saying, “Dear Mamuka Jugeli, you are a piece of filth and a disgrace. I’m embarrassed at your sense of reasoning. Keep my name out of your mouth!!!.”
His agent added, “The alleged words of agent Mamuka Jugeli are bad, superficial and unacceptable. These words create problems for my player Victor Osimhen with Napoli fans without any reason or real of the reality. We have just signed a contract renewal and Victor’s only wish, in addition to the Africa Cup of Nations, is to help Napoli. Everything else is rubbish.”
The relationship between the player and the club went from bad to worse over the past few weeks with sources close to the situation indicating that the final straw came when Osimhen’s agent publicly criticized Napoli’s handling of the transfer negotiations. The fallout has significantly damaged the trust between the player and the club, making any reconciliation difficult.
Additional report from Punch Metro
