According to Corriere dello Sport (via SportWitness), Arsenal have the upper hand over Chelsea in the race to sign Napoli striker Victor Osimhen.
The Nigerian star has been tipped to leave Napoli for a number of weeks, but no club has reached an agreement with the Serie A outfit. Paris Saint-Germain have been in negotiations for the former Lille man, but they have refused to meet the transfer demands.
It is now reported by Corriere dello Sport that Arsenal have managed to break in and join the race for the highly-rated striker. Chelsea are also admirers of the 25-year-old, but the outlet claim that they are no longer a priority for him.
Elite striker
Osimhen had a disrupted 2023/24 season with Napoli. He was in-and-out of the starting line-up due to injury issues and also missed games at the turn of the year due to his involvement in the Africa Cup of Nations with Nigeria.
Despite this, he registered 17 goals and 4 assists from 32 appearances. He is a ‘world-class‘ striker according to Jose Mourinho and Arsenal could be tempted to bring him to the Premier League this summer.
The Gunners have yet to offload any strikers from their squad, but Eddie Nketiah could leave in the near future. Marseille are pushing for his signature and a transfer agreement could be sealed before the new season.
This could encourage the Gunners to spend big on a marquee centre-forward, but we don’t see the London giants triggering the £110 million release clause present in Osimhen’s Napoli contract.
There is a huge risk associated due to his injury troubles. PSG’s offer of £76 million was snubbed by Napoli owner Aurelio De Laurentiis and Arsenal will need to pay much more than that.
Arsenal are alternatively looking into a deal for Sporting Lisbon’s Viktor Gyokeres, who scored an extraordinary 43 goals last season. He could be signed for £59 million and would be a better choice.
