Garcia slams Napoli President De Laurentiis over Osimhen’s contract saga

Former Napoli coach Rudi Garcia has criticised club president Aurelio De Laurentiis for his poor handling of Victor Osimhen’s contract negotiations, accusing him of mismanagement that has strained Osimhen’s relationship with the club.

Osimhen, a key figure in Napoli’s Serie A title success in 2023, was embroiled in a contentious contract saga last summer. Despite significant bids from Chelsea and Al-Ahli, De Laurentiis stood firm on his €130 million valuation of the Nigerian forward. The standoff ended with Osimhen extending his contract by just one year, prolonging its expiration to 2026.

In an interview cited by Haber Sari Kirmizi, Garcia stated, “Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis doesn’t understand football. Contracts for players like Victor Osimhen and Piotr Zielinski should have been renewed long before last summer.”

Garcia further accused De Laurentiis of excessive interference, claiming, “He meddled in everything from tactics to player preferences, and I was made to pay the price for telling him to stay in his lane.” He asserted that De Laurentiis’s interference led to player and staff dissatisfaction, resulting in instability within the club.

“Had he opted to keep me at the helm, we would have qualified for the Champions League instead of languishing in 10th place,” Garcia lamented, emphasizing that a significant portion of the players and staff expressed a desire to leave the club during his tenure due to De Laurentiis’s unwanted input.

While Zielinski recently secured a new contract, Osimhen’s future at Napoli remains uncertain. Garcia’s comments have reignited speculation about Osimhen’s future, although a January transfer appears unlikely.