Chelsea abandon race to sign Victor Osimhen
According to the Evening Standard, Chelsea have cooled their interest in signing Victor Osimhen. Napoli earlier confirmed that the Nigerian striker will leave the club after the end of the season with the Blues in the race to sign him.
The latest development raises sudden questions about Chelsea’s pursuit of the former LOSC Lille striker. It confirms that the Osimhen release clause seems to be proving difficult for the club to activate.
The 25-year-old has a £113m release clause, and Napoli will be hoping that interested parties meet the criteria if they want to sign him. Chelsea may now make a U-turn, as they have first balanced the books to comply with Premier League profit and sustainability rules.
In order to do so, the Blues have already put homegrown players such as Conor Gallagher and Trevoh Chalobah on sale, and while Ian Maatsen is on loan to Borussia Dortmund, he could make a permanent switch to the German club.
The only option available to the Blues is to sell players and earn money before making any additions. The Nigerian’s present injury and the excessive Osimhen clause raise doubts about whether he’ll be a good fit for the Blues.
Osimhen has a history of ailments, and although he led Napoli to the Serie A championship in the 2022-23 season, he was not playing at his peak intensity last season. Thus, it begs the question of whether the team should pay that much to sign the 25-year-old.
The Blues have other options, such as Benjamin Sesko and Ivan Toney, who could be available for a lower fee, and they could prove to be better signings given that Toney has English top-flight exposure, while Seso is young and boasts incredible ball-striking ability, which Chelsea needs in front of the net.
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Thus, the club will have a big decision to make in their recruitment of a striker because it’s something they have to carefully locate and sign and not make another poor signing like last time.