Chelsea reject ANOTHER Lukaku bid

Robin Bairner

Updated: 23 Aug 2024 11:57 BST
2 min read

Chelsea have turned down another bid from Napoli to land Romelu Lukaku.

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The Blues have been locked in talks with the Serie A side for much of the summer, with Victor Osimhen a prominent point of discussion, yet the desire of Napoli boss Antonio Conte means that Lukaku has also become an important figure for both clubs.

The Serie A side are desperate to land the Belgium international while the Blues are eager to get him off their books, yet the two teams have been unable to come to an accord.

Di Marzio reported on Thursday that Chelsea had knocked back an offer, while Nicolo Schira has given more details on exactly what the Blues rejected.

He claims: “Chelsea have turned down Napoli’s offer to sign Romelu Lukaku on loan (€5m), with the obligation to buy of €25m. Chelsea want to sell him on a permanent deal immediately and ask for €35m at least. Expected new round of talks today.”

Lukaku has already agreed a contract with Napoli that will run three years and will be worth in the region of €6m per year.

What does this mean for Osimhen?

Although Chelsea are discussing the deals for Osimhen, who they are still interested in, and Lukaku separately, the futures of the two players are inextricably linked.

Lukaku is seen as the successor to Osimhen at Napoli, with the Nigeria international destined to leave before the end of next week.

The Belgium is, therefore, still a valuable bargaining chip for Chelsea in talks over the 25-year-old, and so long as he is in their possession, it increases their chances of landing Osimhen.

Chelsea will still have obstacles of overcome, however. Firstly, Osimhen’s wage of €11m per year is set to be problematic for them to match, while the striker has indicated that he is not interested in a loan move, which is what the Blues are likely to offer.