Reports coming out of Germany suggest that league leaders Bayern Munich are interested in signing Napoli striker Victor Osimhen.
Osimhen, 24, is one of the hottest properties in world football at the moment thanks to his exploits for Napoli in the Serie A. He is third behind Harry Kane and Erling Haaland in the European golden shoe race and is leading the line in the Serie A Capocannoniere race.
Injuries have also contributed to his current position, which suggests that he could be doing much better if he had stayed fit for the whole season.
He has impressed enough, however, to be able to draw the attention of the world's top teams. Napoli and the former RSC Charleroi man have a contract that ties them both together until 2025. This means that the Neapolitans are at liberty to set any price they deem worthy to bring them to the negotiation table.
£150 million is their set price, according to the club's president Aurelio De Laurentiis. This could discourage all the clubs interested in Osimhen's signature. The case is different, however, for Premier League side Chelsea, who have reportedly established contact with Napoli over Osimhen's transfer.
The Blues now have Bayern Munich to contend with, as the Bavarians are reportedly interested in taking the Nigeria international to the Allianz Arena in the summer.
The German Bundesliga league leaders are yet to replace Robert Lewandowski, who moved to Barcelona in the summer. Osimhen is the perfect striker for the team according to their scouts, and they are willing to pay as high as €100 million to have him wear their colours next season.
Plettigoal reports that Bayern have entered into talks with Napoli about the move. They are hoping to beat Chelsea and the other interested clubs from around Europe before the summer window officially begins. Having missed out on Erling Haaland, they are determined to get a young striker who can be at the club for a long time like Lewandowski.
It is uncertain whether De Laurentiis will accept their €100 million for Osimhen as it is below their asking price. However, it is looking increasingly likely that Osimhen may be playing his last season at the Diego Armando Maradona stadium.
He came to the club for €75 million in 2020 from LOSC Lille, where he spent only a season after impressing in Belgium with Charleroi. He has battled injury problems for most of his time in Italy, but has managed to outshine most of the transfers into the league in that time frame.
The 2022/23 season is his best yet and it coincides with Napoli's rise to the top of the league. It is reminiscent of Diego Maradona's efforts which saw them win their only two Scudetto to date in 1987 and 1990. The Nigerian, voted the best foreign player in Italy by the foreign press, is now a fan favourite in the city.
Osimhen, however, could be out of that fixture, casting a shadow of doubt over the Neapolitans' ability to make it past their Serie A rivals in the competition.
You will recall that the striker made an erroneous tweet which indicated that he would be out for the rest of the season, before deleting it as the prognosis was made public by De Laurentiis. His latest comments now state that he will be back in shape in “10 to 12 days”, giving both hope and creating scepticism among Partenopei fans.
“We are all happy and giving our best to make our dream come true. We are close to the objective and can’t wait for that dream to become reality. Naples is extraordinary, so passionate. I have never received so much love and I can’t wait to celebrate the title with them in the stadium and in the streets.”
This article was most recently revised and updated 7 months ago
