How the Osimhen, Al-Ahli, Chelsea transfer saga unfolded on deadline day | OneFootball

After a hectic transfer deadline day in Serie A, Victor Osimhen ended up staying at Napoli after seeing negotiations with both Al-Ahli and Chelsea fall through, but is expected to remain an outcast from Antonio Conte’s first-team group after an explosive row with Partenopei management.

Here’s how the transfer saga unfolded.

How the Osimhen transfer saga unfolded

To get the full picture, it is worth going back to the end of Napoli’s Scudetto winning 2022-23 season in Serie A. The team had just won the  title for the first time in over 30 years, and Osimhen finished as the division’s highest goalscorer.

Napoli were keen not to sell their talisman directly after the title win, and instead looked to extend his contract, which had been due to expire in 2025.

Eventually that extension came on December 23, 2023. Osimhen signed a new deal until 2026 with an increase in wages up to around €10m per season. There was also a €130m release clause included in the deal.

The Nigerian had a stop-start season in 2023-24 through injuries, constant managerial changes and unavailability due to his AFCON call-ups, but still registered 15 goals from 25 Serie A appearances.

Napoli ready to sell

Antonio Conte was appointed in June, and it soon became clear that Napoli would target a move for Romelu Lukaku, a player who the coach particularly enjoys working with. It also became clear that Napoli would look to cash in on Osimhen in the window.

While looking for a move away from the club, Osimhen trained away from the group during the summer and did not feature in any of the team’s pre-season friendlies.

Many reports suggested he was keen on a move to Paris Saint-Germain to replace the Real-Madrid bound Kylian Mbappe, but there was never any official approach from the Parisians.

As the summer ticked on, it became increasingly unlikely that any team were going to pay Napoli the €130m release clause in the player’s contract. At that price, and with Osimhen likely to command a hefty wage packet, there were only a handful of clubs who could have possibly signed him.

No deal with Al-Ahli or Chelsea

Approaching deadline day, it became clear that the only two viable options would be Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea, or Al-Ahli of the Saudi Pro League. Both clubs were pushing to get the deal done in the final 48 hours of the window.

Napoli were ready to accept a fee below the €130m release clause for Osimhen. Al-Ahli had reportedly offered around €80m for his services.

On Thursday, reports confirmed that Osimhen had been offered an enormous four-year contract from Al-Ahli worth a total of €160m (€40m per season). Osimhen reportedly agreed to those terms, which meant it then went down to the two clubs negotiating a fee.

That’s where it all came to a blow for Napoli and Osimhen. The deal collapsed on deadline day when, according to reports, Napoli attempted to ask for a slightly higher price from Al-Ahli, who then decided to walk away from the deal.

That left Osimhen and his representatives completely outraged with the club, while some reports in Italy described the relationship between the player and his employers as ‘completely broken’.

Chelsea, meanwhile, had agreed a fee with Napoli, but were unable to come to an agreement with Osimhen on personal terms, reportedly offering him €4m per season in wages and €4m a year in bonuses, which was considerably less than the €10m per season wage packet on his Napoli contract.

With no deal in place with either Chelsea or Al-Ahli, Osimhen is now stuck at Napoli and is not currently part of Antonio Conte’s first team plans.