Premier League giants Arsenal have reportedly dropped their interest in Napoli striker, Victor Osimhen, due to his €130m price tag amid player swap rumours, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.
After four successful seasons at Napoli, Osimhen is expected to call time on his career with the 2022/23 Serie A champions this summer, as confirmed by club president Aurelio de Laurentiis.
The Partenopei have fought hard to keep hold of the Nigeria international and agreed a new contract with their star striker last December, but his terms only run until the summer of 2026.
With Osimhen’s contract also including a release clause worth around €130m (£110.6m), De Laurentiis has resigned himself to losing the former Lille man to one of Europe’s financial powerhouses ahead of the 2024/25 season.
Arsenal have been one of a handful of clubs tipped to move for Osimhen, alongside Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid, although the latter will not make an approach due to the recent capture of Kylian Mbappe.
It has also been reported that new Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca is against the signing of the 25-year-old as well, as he does not believe that Osimhen is a striker who can link play and drop deep, which is one of his principal requirements.
As a result, a two-way fight could have materialised between PSG and Arsenal, the latter of whom were apparently informed that a part-exchange deal involving Emile Smith Rowe and Takehiro Tomiyasu could have been their ticket to an agreement.
However, according to Sky Italia, Arsenal have informed Napoli that they are not bowing to their £110.6m demands, especially after breaking their own transfer record with the £105m capture of Declan Rice last year.
Arsenal still rate the striker highly but cannot justify forking out a nine-figure fee, which is also the case with most of Osimhen’s other suitors, so De Laurentiis may be forced to relent on demanding that the Nigerian’s release clause is paid in full.
The Napoli president is now under added pressure to accept a lower fee for the Nigerian due to the arrival of Antonio Conte, who wants to reunite with Chelsea’s Romelu Lukaku in one of his first acts as head coach.
PSG are now considered the favourites for Osimhen’s signature, as the ex-Lille man is not keen on moving to Saudi Arabia, and the French champions will save €200m (£170.1m) in yearly wages now that Mbappe has departed.
Osimhen topped the Serie A scoring charts in the 2022/23 season with 26 strikes and netted 15 times in 2023/24 missing a large part of the season due to injuries and the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.
