Born in Naples on 10/03/88, graduated in Philosophy and Politics at the Oriental University of Naples. He has been working for TMW since 2008, he was deputy director for 10 years. Correspondent following the National Team
Last September 4th the French daily newspaper The Team revealed the content of an email sent by Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis to Al Hilal executives who had made a pharaonic offer of 200 million euros for Victor Osimhen’s registration. On that occasion, the president of the Neapolitan team was still inebriated by the celebrations for the Scudetto just won he replied to the Arab company that with 200 million they could buy only one foot of Osimhen. And then in another passage he added: “For next year I think you will be able to offer 500 million and we will probably consider your offer, but I repeat: maybe.”
Aurelio De Laurentiis had evidently miscalculated. Having overcome a summer without a transfer in which the Nigerian striker was on the crest of the wave – the most sought-after striker on the World scene – a season with more controversy and goals has arrived. Not a year to throw away, but certainly not up to the level of the previous one. Given that linked to the age of a young but no longer very young boy (born in ’98, he will turn 26 in October) it has led several clubs to negatively evaluate the possibility of an investment that is still very important, from 120/130 million euros just for the registration.
Osimhen also became the highest paid player in Serie A last season. Just before Christmas he agreed to a salary of 10 million euros net per season, a salary that makes him the highest paid player in the league: not even Lautaro Martinez will reach that after the renewal of Inter. On that occasion De Laurentiis granted him such a significant salary both to calm a club that was already unhappy with how the season was going, but also (above all) to avoid finding himself this summer with the best player a year before his contract expires. A clause was inserted into that agreement that was considered reasonable by both parties, considered ‘fair’ to arrive at an easy transfer this summer. Here, too, everyone had miscalculated.
With 39 days to go until the summer transfer window closes, the only club interested in Osimhen is PSG. Interested, but not in negotiations because the French champion club, before making the move, must sell one of Kolo Muani and Goncalo Ramos. A double investment of over 150 million euros at high risk of devaluation also because it was made only a year ago. For Al Khelaifi and Campos, these are not easy sales given the figures and their performance last season. They are not exits that PSG is managing to define and this, inevitably, also has repercussions on Victor Osimhen, a centre forward who at the end of July thought he had already started his new adventure and who instead is in Dimaro, waiting for news.
There is still time to resolve the situation, it is July 23 and there is still time to define this operation. But the Osimhen affair (who would have preferred the Premier) has taken a turn that none of the protagonists hoped it would take. Not even Romelu Lukaku, a footballer who is waiting for the Nigerian striker to leave to return to work with Antonio Conte. He is the striker chosen to replace the great protagonist of Napoli’s third Scudetto. It’s all planned, but when will the transfer take place?