- 9 hours ago
Osimhen’s FURIOUS reaction to failed transfer revealed as Napoli ace faces ‘TOXIC’ claim
Robin Bairner
- Updated: 2 Sept 2024 09:21 BST
- 4 min read
Napoli striker Victor Osimhen reacted furiously as the opportunity to leave for Chelsea this summer collapsed in a Deadline Day mess, according to reports from Italy.
Osimhen had set his heart on leaving Napoli, with Chelsea and Saudi Pro League side Al-Ahli both offering possible exit routes. These were not shut until late on Deadline Day, yet the disappointment of it all was almost too much for the striker to bear.
Il Mattino, the local paper of Naples, has detailed the angry reaction of the player – and just why it came about.
“Roberto Calenda, Osimhen’s agent, promised the moon to his client without having practically anything in his hands,” Calcio Napoli 24 relays. “After the Al-Ahli possibility fell through, along with the one that led to Chelsea, Victor slammed the doors and punched the walls and tables.”
READ MORE: Five players who could move to Saudi Arabia
Current ETV
Victor Osimhen
F (C)
Napoli
Victor Osimhen
F (C)
Napoli
ETV Range
€53.3M - €88.9M
No way back
To make matters worse for Osimhen, Napoli head coach Antonio Conte will not welcome him back into the squad.
Conte said as much on Saturday after Romelu Lukaku, the man who took Osimhen’s No.9 jersey, struck late on as a dramatic 2-1 success over Parma was secured.
Monday’s Corriere dello Sport reaffirms this stance.
READ MORE: Five possible destinations for Napoli exile Osimhen
“Conte could try to involve Osimhen and launch a dream pairing with Lukaku, but he won’t do it. For him, principles, respect and coherence go beyond any result,” the paper says.
“Osimhen’s situation conditioned Napoli’s transfer market and consequently slowed down the building of the new team. In short, everyone has faced and paid the consequences of one of the most sensational cases in the recent history of the transfer market. And there’s no going back.”
Osimhen ‘toxic’
In a further sensational twist, Osimhen’s brother-in-law Osita Okolo has claimed that the forward is a “toxic” presence in the dressing room.
“Thank you [president] Aurelio DeLaurentiis and Mr. Conte for providing sanity & the required leadership to the Napoli team. The purging of the ‘outcast’ from the team was long overdue. This outcast made the beautiful Napoli team so toxic for over two years,” he tweeted.
“No individual is bigger than the team. Lessons must be learnt!”
Osimhen is set to be frozen out by Napoli until the January transfer window, although Conte does have the possibility of making two changes to his squad.
