Chelsea are in advanced talks with Napoli to sign Victor Osimhen on a swap deal. The Blues are offering Romelu Lukaku plus one player along with £40m for the Nigerian striker. Both Napoli and Chelsea are desperate to get this deal done before deadline. Napoli boss Antonio Conte has listed signing Lukaku in his priority list. Osimhen has decided to leave and the club will not stand in his way when the perfect offer arrives.
Chelsea’s urgency to sign Osimhen has increased after the deal for Samu Omorodion collapsed. The West London side are eager to sign a new striker this season. The Nigerian striker is their dream signing within the club. The club is closing in on a swap deal with Napoli.
The Sun reports Chelsea are now on the verge of completing the deal with Conte eager for attacking midfielder Cesare Casadei to be included in the deal. Napoli also want an addition £39million on top. Chelsea signed Casadei from Inter Milan in August 2022, who was in loan at Reading. He has joined Enzo Maresca’s camp this season. He has a lot of potential and the coaches feel he will become the next star of Italy.
Chelsea do not wish to pay Napoli’s £110m fee for Osimhen but Conte’s request for Lukaku has opened many options. Napoli’s sporting director, Giovanni Manna, travelled to London on Tuesday for talks with Chelsea over a deal for Lukaku and mentioned Victor Osimhen.
Chelsea legend advises Victor Osimhen to switch to Stamford Bridge
Chelsea and Nigeria football legend John Obi Mikel has urged Victor Osimhen to move to Chelsea this summer. He has been in contact with the striker constantly convincing him to join the Blues despite the recent circumstances. Legendary Blues’ striker Didier Drogba has also advised Osimhen to join the West London side this summer instead of PSG. He idolised Drogba when he was a young budding footballer.
Obi Mikel was talking to La Gazzetta dello Sport speaking about the club and the player’s mutual interest. He says;
“I hope that Chelsea fans finally get to see him at our club, I would like him to understand that Chelsea should become his absolute priority, it would be fantastic if he came to play here.”
The Nigerian earns a lot of wages at Napoli which he might need to cut at Chelsea. The Blues have to adjust their wage bill and reduce player salaries to comply with the financial fair play rules. The club do not want to face points deduction like Everton and Nottingham Forrest.
The Blues in dilemma whether to sign Joao Felix or not:
Chelsea have an opportunity to sign Joao Felix permanently from Atletico Madrid this season. The Spanish club want to sell the Portuguese because of damaged relations. Atleti boss Diego Simeone does not consider him in his plans, thus it would be best for both parties if a deal could be agreed upon. The 24 year old showed what he is capable of in his loan stint at Barcelona. However, it was not enough for the Catalan giants to sign him.
Felix would love to move to Chelsea on a permanent deal. He wants to settle at one club so that he can improve his football gradually. He is not a necessity for the Blues but considering how randomly they sign players from the transfer market it will not be surprising if they end up signing the 24 year old before deadline.
Reports suggest that the player’s camp is confident about striking a deal with the London outfit. Manager Enzo Maresca admires the 24 year old and would love to help him revive his career at Stamford Bridge. The player also has Premier league experience. It is upto the player’s agents and the clubs to agree upon the fee and contract structure and proceed.
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