Osimhen stunned as Chelsea REJECT Lukaku bid

Tom Weber

Updated: 19 Aug 2024 19:25 BST
3 min read

Chelsea are set to reject Napoli's formal bid for Romelu Lukaku, according to a report.

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Early on Monday, it was revealed that Napoli had finally launched an official offer for Chelsea outcast Lukaku after weeks of talks. Personal terms are not an issue, with the player desperate for the move and Antonio Conte pushing to be reunited with his former Inter star.

However, despite the fact that Lukaku has not featured in Chelsea's plans for several years, the Blues are holding out for a €40 million fee, having spent a ridiculous €113m on the Belgian in 2021. Lukaku, therefore, won't come cheap and this has been an issue for a Napoli side who have spent profligately this summer.

Hence it took until the final weeks of the window for the Serie A side to table a formal offer. However, this bid has clocked in at just €30m, according to Ben Jacobs, who reports that Chelsea have told Napoli that this won't be enough and that they will have to match the €40m asking price.

Osimhen faces race against time

With just a little over a week to go until the window shuts, Victor Osimhen won't be delighted with Napoli trying to lowball their Chelsea counterparts given that he has a key role to play in this whole saga.

Despite Osimhen and Lukaku formally being separate deals, talks between Chelsea and Napoli are, of course, simultaneously taking place over the Nigerian striker, who is desperate to leave Naples this summer.

So far, no significant progress has been made with both sides steadfastly defending their point of view: Osimhen won't lower his salary or settle for a loan and Chelsea have no intention to pay his inflated wages.

Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano does not expect any movement on the Osimhen front until the final days of the window, but one can't help but feel that a quick resolution regarding Lukaku would speed up the process significantly.