Napoli’s ‘important’ interest in Osimhen and the Nigeria star’s racism concerns
Napoli’s ‘important’ interest in Osimhen and the Nigeria star’s racism concerns
The Super Eagles forward was expected in the Campania capital to finalise a deal but his agent has provided an update on the proposed transfer
Osita Okolo, the representative of Victor Osimhen has stated the interest by Napoli in his player is “important”.
According to reports , the 21-year-old will jet off to Naples to complete a deal thought to be in the region of €50–60 million but his agent has raised serious concerns.
Interest in the Nigerian comes on the back of a fine season with Lille where Osimhen scored 18 goals and provided six assists in 38 competitive games which earned him the prize of the club’s player of the season and most recently the Marc-Vivien Foe award as the best African in Ligue 1 .
He beat off Moses Simon, Denis Bouanga, Andy Delort, Islam Slimani, Mbaye Niang, Hamari Traore and Edouard Mendy to win the award in France.
“Napoli’s interest is important. De Laurentis and the manager [Gattuso] really like Victor. There have already been several contacts,” Okolo told TuttoMercato .
Osimhen’s agent revealed no agreement has been reached as some reports claim, insisting he is still a Lille player.
Okolo says Osimhen is fond of the city of Naples which is located in southern Italy and interest in him from a big club like Napoli that has sported greats like Diego Maradona and Gonzalo Higuain, is only natural.
“This is not true, to date no prior agreement has been reached with Naples. We will see what will happen with Lille, to which Osimhen belongs,” he continued.
“Victor likes Naples, a fantastic city, and obviously he also likes Napoli as a team. The interest of a big Italian [club] personally does not surprise me considering how well he did with Lille.”
There is the question of racism which is very rife in Italy with players such as Napoli centre-back Kalidou Koulibaly targeted. Okolo acknowledges the problem and insists this is where the ball lies in Osimhen’s court to make a decision.
“If we talk about Serie A, however, many other factors must be considered,” Okolo stated.
“The racism issue. In Italy there is a big problem from my point of view, unfortunately, it is a widespread phenomenon. In any case, the final word on its future will be up to Victor and no one else.”
Osimhen has previously been on the books of Wolfsburg and Charleroi in Germany and Belgium respectively. He had a greater impact with the latter, having a hand in 24 goals (20 goals, four assists) in 36 appearances.