Victor Osimhen, who played for Wolfsburg, Charleroi and Lille before joining Napoli in 2020, recently made headlines when he said: “I’m working so hard to make sure that I achieve my dream of playing in the Premier League some day”.
“It’s a process and I just want to keep on this momentum and continue to do well.”
“A lot of people worldwide consider the Premier League as the best and the strongest league but now I’m in one of the best leagues in the world which is the Italian Serie A.”
A switch to England might not be simple though, with Napoli president Aurelio de Laurentiis a larger-than-life figure and difficult negotiator.
Victor Osimhen: See What was Said
James Horncastle, an Italian football expert, said on BBC Radio 5 Live’s Football Daily podcast that Victor Osimhen would cost more than 100m euros (£89m) and “probably closer to” 150m euros (£133m).
Only Paris St-Germain duo Neymar and Kylian Mbappe have ever moved for fees of £133m or higher.
The current British transfer record is Chelsea’s £107m signing of Benfica midfielder Enzo Fernandez in January.
Horncastle added: “The one thing to counter against the inevitability that so often is projected from the entitlement of Premier League clubs and fans is that ultimately negotiating with Napoli is never easy.
“There’s a reason Kalidou Koulibaly only joined Chelsea in his 30s when he was linked to the Premier League for five years.”
Chelsea signed Senegal defender Koulibaly, 31, from Napoli last summer for £35m – having first tried to sign him in 2016.
Talking about Napoli’s all-time top scorer, Horncastle continued: “Chelsea were prepared to sign Dries Mertens when Frank Lampard was the manager [in 2020] and instead he only leaves [last summer to Galatasaray] when Napoli said we won’t give you a new deal.”
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“It’ll be the same with Victor Osimhen. I’m sure many clubs will get in touch with the president and after a month of negotiation; will think is this really worth it? That’s always been De Laurentiis’ great strength.”
Horncastle added: “He wasn’t suggesting a Premier League move was imminent, more so, it’s something he’s working on and it’ll happen if it happens”.
