Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone believes Super Eagles and Napoli striker, Victor Osimhen, is worth more than €100m should the Italian champions choose to sell him in the summer.
Osimhen has been making the headlines all through the season and has emerged as one of Europe’s most sought after strikers in Europe with Manchester United, Chelsea, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich among the big clubs interested in signing him this summer.
The Nigerian, who leads Serie A top scorer chart with 23 goals and five assists in 28 matches, is valued at €150m.
On several occasions, Napoli president, Aurelio de Laurentiis, has insisted the Nigerian is not for sale but that has not stopped continuous reports linking the striker with a move away from the club in the summer.
In an exclusive interview with Italian sports publication, Gazzetta dello Sport, Simeone, while hoping that Napoli can hold on to their most prized asset, suggested that a fee in the region of over €100m must be paid for Osimhen in case Napoli are willing to sell him.
“The Nigerian is incredibly strong,” Simeone said.
“There are few players with his characteristics out there, and I believe he could be worth over a hundred million. I’m not saying that he should be sold, but I’m just repeating the kind of reasoning I make for my Atletico.
“If a financially powerful club comes along and offers double the salary, you have to bleed yourself dry and mess up your accounts just to keep a player. It’s better to make a change. And who is better (at that) than Napoli?
“They let go of important players, and look at what players like Kvaratskhelia and Kim have achieved.”
Osimhen on Sunday leapfrogged George Weah to become the highest scoring African in Serie A history after netting Napoli’s only goal in their 1-0 win over Fiorentina at the Diego Maradona stadium which took his tally in three seasons to 47 goals.
The 24-year-old said after the game he was willing to score more goals as the 2022/2023 Serie A season gradually come to a close.
“I think the curse is about to be broken, we still have four games to go and I want to get as many goals as possible, while winning the games,” he told DAZN.
