Napoli not interested in Osimhen, Lukaku swap

Pier Francesco Monachino, an Italian transfer specialist, has boldly stated that Serie A powerhouse Napoli will not consider Chelsea's offer, which includes Romelu Lukaku and Cesare Casadei in addition to cash for Nigerian international Victor Osimhen.

The English Premier League was prepared to make Lukaku and Casadei an offer to sign the Super Eagles striker in exchange for a payment of about €30 million to Napoli in order to entice him to Stamford Bridge.

In December, Osimhen and Napoli reached an agreement on a new deal. However, those conditions are only valid through the summer of 2026, and the agreement purports to contain a £113 million release clause.

Despite this, elite teams continue to express interest in the Lagos-born striker, who has become one of Europe's most sought-after players after being linked to moves to Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United, Liverpool, and Paris Saint-Germain, among other teams.
After initially insisting that a nine-figure fee must be paid in full should an interested party seek to purchase Osimhen away from Naples, Partenopei president Aurelio de Laurentiis has accepted that Osimhen will not be returning to Naples, and the Italian powerhouses are now willing to reduce their asking price for the Nigerian.

Italian publication Corriere dello Sport claims that Napoli is willing to accept offers of about €100 million (£84.7 million), which is less than what they originally demanded for their striker.

The Blues have been encouraged by the increased desire and are prepared to give players plus cash for Osimhen, according to a Sunday article on TeamTalk.

According to the article on X, "Chelsea are willing to offer Romelu Lukaku and Cesare Casadei to Napoli to help lower the price of Victor Osimhen."

The 2022/2023 Serie A winners, according to Monachino, won't sign the Belgian forward unless they sell the Nigerian, as he stated in an interview with Sky Sport Italia via IlNapolista.

Osimhen is the first problem. We have brought up Lukaku in recent weeks as, when we discuss Conte, we always bring him up.

"The Belgian stated that Conte is the greatest coach he has ever had, but Napoli would not pursue Lukaku if Osimhen stays on board.

"Although Napoli will not go below three figures, the clause is €130m. There was only an inquiry from Saudi Arabia, indicating the player's clear desire to remain in Europe.

Chelsea consistently requests more than €40 million for Lukaku. Lukaku piques Milan's attention as well.

Osimhen, who cost a club record €70 million plus an additional €10 million in bonuses to join Napoli from Lille in the summer of 2020, has been a tremendous player for the Parthenopeans the previous two seasons, leading them to their first Scudetto victory in more than thirty years.
With 26 league goals at the end of the 2022–2023 season, the striker from Lagos was crowned the league's best scorer.

Osimhen managed to pose a somewhat decent figure despite Napoli's dismal 2023–24 season, in which they won just 13 games, lost 11, and drew 14. He scored 15 goals and provided three assists from 25 league matches.