Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen could be nearing his exit from Napoli as the Italian champions have lined up three possible replacements according to reports.
The Super Eagles forward has been excellent for Napoli since making the switch to Naples from French side Lille in 2020. He has been able to get a number of goals for the Serie A champions and also led them to the league title last campaign.
Victor Osimhen, who is still under contract until 2025 with the Naples side, has seen things change over the happenings in the recent week and that could lead to his exit from the club next summer.
In a bid to prepare for his potential departure, Napoli have already started planning and it seems they have identified some players who could do the job when the Super Eagles striker eventually leaves.
Why Victor Osimhen could be leaving Napoli
Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen is edging ever closer to leaving Napoli in the January transfer window after a controversial Tiktok video was posted on social media by the Italian club.
Osimhen won the golden boot scoring 26 league goals, as Napoli claimed their first Serie A title in 33 years last season.
Osimhen was the target of two derogatory videos that were circulated on the prominent social media platform. The first video appeared to mock him for failing to score a penalty towards the end of last month. The second video, which referred to him as a ‘coconut', has been interpreted as a racially offensive term.
That row saw Osimhen delete almost all the pictures of him in a Napoli jersey on his personal Instagram account and the club also failed to appropriately apologise to him, many believe to have angered the playermore. With that in mind, an exit from the club might be on the cards.
Meanwhile, famous Italian transfer market expert Fabrizio Romano believes that Victor Osimhen may likely leave Napoli at the end of the 2023-2024 season if he does not agree to a new deal within the next three months.
Napoli’s replacements for Victor Osimhen
The Serie A champions are looking in the direction of Arsenal’s Gabriel Jesus as a potential replacement for Victor Osimhen alongside Lille's Jonathan David and Atletico Madrid's Alvaro Morata as other options.
🚨 Napoli are looking at Gabriel Jesus, Alvaro Morata and Jonathan David as possible replacements for Victor Osimhen, whose contract runs out in 2025.
(Source: Calciomercato) pic.twitter.com/lNZNCcMKIp
— Transfer News Live (@DeadlineDayLive) October 8, 2023
As reported by Calciomercato, Rudi Garcia's team has identified three potential options for their roster: Jesus from Arsenal, Jonathan David from Lille, and Alvaro Morata from Atletico Madrid.
Jesus, whose first season at the Emirates was hampered by injuries, scored 11 goals in 26 league games as they finished second behind Manchester City in the league. The Brazilian remains a key figure in Mikel Arteta’s setup.
On the other hand, David is one of the finest goalscorers in the French League over the past few seasons and scored 26 goals across all competitions for Lille last season. At just 23, the Canada international is the youngest of Napoli's three targets and potentially has a bright future in front of him.
Morata, 30, is the oldest of the targets and has played for the biggest clubs in his career. He is currently in excellent form after scoring seven goals in seven games for Atletico this season.
This article was most recently revised and updated 3 weeks ago
