Gianluca Di Marzio reports to Il Napolista that despite the assumption that Victor Osimhen will leave the club this summer, only Arsenal are currently in the mix, and they aren’t close to signing him.
“[Victor] Osimhen, we assume that he will go away,” Di Marzio began. “At the moment, there is only Arsenal, who are far from the clause.
“If he were to leave, and at the moment it is not certain, the very first choice would be [Romelu] Lukaku, the alternative is [Artem] Dovbyk from Girona.”
Arsenal had been heavily linked with a move for Osimhen earlier in the 2023/24 campaign, but the links had faded away amid claims that Paris Saint-Germain were looking at the striker to replace Kylian Mbappe.
David Ornstein had reported that Osimhen featured prominently on PSG’s list of candidates to replace Mbappe, with the club stepping up various discussions in January to be ready for the player’s potential departure.
Yet L’Equipe (via GFFN) now report that PSG’s interest in Osimhen has cooled, with no advancements in the move to sign him.
It’s still reportedly expected that Osimhen will leave Napoli, but his destination is now unclear.
Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis previously confirmed that the striker has a release clause, and that Arsenal were in the mix.
“Some players stay for many years, others are wanted by PSG, Arsenal, Man City, Chelsea…” De Laurentiis said in March.
“It’s difficult to keep players when they are wanted by rich clubs.
“I can confirm there’s a release clause, a very high one.”
That clause is believed to be as high as £113m, which Arsenal are unlikely to pay.
Osimhen scored 17 goals and assisted four in 32 games this season amid a couple of injury setbacks and his month-long run to the final of the Africa Cup of Nations.