Chelsea are prepared to double the current salary of Victor Osimhen from €4.5m to €9m (N4.4b) yearly in their efforts to secure the services of Napoli’s goal poacher.
But Osimhen has insisted that he wants to ‘repay’ the love shown by Napoli fans with the Scudetto after he was awarded with the ‘Best Foreign Player in Italy’ award yesterday by the Foreign Press Association.
The Nigerian ace has scored 21 goals and provided a further four assists in 26 appearances across all competitions so far this season, firing Napoli to the top of the Serie A table.
Though Manchester United have been heavily linked with a move for Osimhen, Chelsea owner Todd Boehly is expected to move on a number of first-team players including the likes of Christian Pulisic and Hakim Ziyech, which may pave the way for Osimhen to join the squad – but it will take a huge bid to lure him away from Naples.
According to Calciomercato, Boehly is willing to double Osimhen’s current €4.5m (£3.9m) salary in order to beat Man United to his signature this summer.
Speaking to the press after being presented with the award yesterday, Osimhen hailed the city of Naples and asserted that he wants to reward fans with Napoli’s first Scudetto since 1989-90.
“When you arrive in Naples as a footballer, you fall in love with the sport even more,” he explained. “People dedicate their lives to football, to supporting the city and the team and this drives me to have a mission to do well for these people.
“They make me very happy and I want to give them something unforgettable. When I arrived in 2020, they immediately showed me great love and I want to repay them on the pitch.
“Everyone here has been brilliant, from the president to the coach and including the players. We all have the opportunity to become icons of this city.”
