Both Manchester United and Chelsea were said to be in a bidding war for one of Europe’s most exciting young strikers, compared to former Blues star Didier Drogba, but the Red Devils may look elsewhere
Manchester United has cleared the way for Chelsea to sign Victor Osimhen from Napoli this summer. This season, the Nigerian striker has excelled in Italy, scoring 26 goals and providing five assists in 33 appearances across all competitions.
With the Nigeria international being a standout performer for Napoli, Manchester United, Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain, and Bayern Munich have all been linked with a move for the 24-year-old. Former Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho compared Osimhen to Chelsea legend Didier Drogba, but offered some advice.
The west Londoners are in need of a goalscoring No.9 after Kai Havertz and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang failed to show they are capable of leading the Blues to trophies and a title challenge this season. Christopher Nkunku, according to football.london, has signed a pre-contract agreement ahead of a summer move to Stamford Bridge from RB Leipzig.
Despite his impressive goalscoring record in the Bundesliga, Nkunku is not regarded as an outright center-forward. Todd Boehly has spent more than £600 million since completing a £4 billion takeover of Chelsea, but has yet to sign a world-class striker to address the Blues’ goal-scoring issues.
According to Goal, Mourinho stated, “He [Osimhen] is on the same level as Drogba, but Didier did not dive.” If Victor changes his mind, that’s fine.
“If I had a lot of money and was in a club, I’d buy him.” However, if he ever goes to England, he must change his ways because in Italy, such behavior is tolerated, whereas in the Premier League, he would be severely punished.”
Chelsea’s Premier League rivals United appear to have given the go-ahead for Boehly to pursue a deal for Osimhen, with Napoli valuing their star striker at around £100 million. According to Sky Germany, Erik ten Hag’s side is currently putting in the most effort to sign Eintracht Frankfurt midfielder Randal Kolo Muani this summer rather than the Napoli star.
United are looking for a new striker after reaching an agreement to end Cristiano Ronaldo’s contract at Old Trafford prior to the World Cup in Qatar. Marcus Rashford has carried the burden of scoring goals for Manchester United this season, and Ten Hag wants to provide additional support for the England international in the coming season.
According to the report, Ten Hag ‘ranks’ Kolo Muani higher than Osimhen, implying that he could be the Dutchman’s first choice. Since joining Frankfurt on a free transfer last summer, the Frenchman has 20 goals and 14 assists in 40 appearances.
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