Chelsea reportedly wins race to sign Osimhen

Premier League side Chelsea have reportedly reached a pre-agreement to sign last season Serie A top scorer Victor Osimhen from Napoli.

According to TEAMtalk, Osimhen who recently signed a contract extension with Napoli with a release clause of £112m, will not be moving to Stamford Bridge in January but has agreed to pen a pr-contract deal with Chelsea this month before making the switch to Chelsea at the end of the season.

The 25-year-old Nigeria international has been phenomenal in the last two seasons where he helped Napoli win their first Serie A title in over three decades last season.

The African Player of the Year has also continued his brilliant form in the 2023/24 season, scoring seven goals in 13 league games this season. He has also grabbed two assists and remains a fan favourite at Napoli.

Chelsea has been very inconsistent this season and manager Mauricio Pochettino has been pushing the board to add more experienced players to his squad and has identified Osimhen as a perfect player to revive the team.

“The Napoli star man will not move this month – the pre-agreement is the only way that a deal will be agreed in this window,” as quoted by TEAMtalk.

“The Nigerian international recently signed a new deal that secured Napoli a big fee, with a release clause of around £112 million attached – that fee is one Napoli will demand if they are to sanction a deal this month.”

There is also pressure on Chelsea to make their move as soon as possible, with the likelihood of a transfer battle in the summer as more clubs will be at the table for Osimhen’s signature.

“Multiple sources in Italy expect some movement to happen in the coming weeks and are convinced this is the last season they will see the 25-year-old in the famous light blue of the Serie A champions.”

The report further states that Blues legends Didier Drogba and John Obi-Mikel who have been in talks with Osimhen helped convince the Nigerian striker to accept Chelsea’s offer.

The deal will see Osimhen become one of Chelsea’s highest-paid players in the summer should he complete the move.