Fabrizio Romano: Can Chelsea afford Victor Osimhen?

Carlo Garganese

• 26 Mar 2024 05:15 CDT
• 3 min read

Fabrizio Romano has questioned whether Chelsea can afford Victor Osimhen this summer.

Chelsea are in the market for a top number nine at the end of the season, and Osimhen is considered by a number of sources as the primary target.

But Osimhen will not come cheap, with Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis likely to demand his full release clause of around €120-130 million in order to sell.

READ MORE: Latest Chelsea transfer news

Romano has raised the question whether Chelsea will be able to afford Osimhen, mainly due to their Financial Fair Play concerns which require the Blues to balance the books this summer.

What did Romano say?

“I think Chelsea will be there,” the transfer expert told CaughtOffside. “The interest is still there.

“It is really important to understand what is happening; first of all with the FFP situation because Chelsea do not want to overpay, so it is important to know how much the package is going to be for Victor Osimhen.

“We already know about the release clause between €120m-€130m with Napoli so Chelsea and other clubs are waiting to see if Napoli can be flexible but usually with their president, De Laurentiis, it is usually very tough to go there and negotiate, especially for a fantastic player like Victor Osimhen.

READ MORE: Latest Chelsea transfer rumours

“It will then be important to see how much Osimhen wants in terms of salary and his contract. So there are some crucial financial points to sort out before Chelsea can say ‘ok’ and go for Osimhen.”

FootballTransfers understands that Osimhen has decided to leave Napoli at the end of the campaign.

The 25-year-old has seen his relationship with Napoli sour this season, following the TikTok scandal in which the club’s own social media team mocked his penalty miss with Bologna.

Osimhen has had a stop-start season on the pitch, while Napoli have endured a disastrous defence of the Scudetto they won last season and are currently seventh in Serie A.

He also has interest from a number of other Premier League and European clubs, including Arsenal.

The Nigerian joined Napoli from Lille in 2020 and has developed into one of the best strikers in the world at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.

He has scored 72 goals in 125 games and played a pivotal role in Napoli winning a historic Scudetto during the 2022-23 season.

Osimhen was Serie A Top Scorer with 26 goals and was named Serie A Footballer of the Year as Napoli won a first Scudetto for 33 years.