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Victor Osimhen, a striker for Napoli, has acknowledged that he turned down the opportunity to play in the Saudi Pro League this summer.
In the summer transfer window, the Nigerian international garnered a lot of attention after an incredibly successful 2022–23 season.
Osimhen finished as Serie A‘s top scorer with 26 goals in 32 league games, helping Napoli win their first championship in thirty-three years.
Ahead of the 2023–24 campaign, Osimhen was linked to Chelsea, Manchester United, and Paris Saint–Germain, among other teams.
But with Aurelio de Laurentiis, the president of Napoli, reportedly asking more than £100 million, most teams seemed unlikely to be able to close a deal.
Al-Hilal, a Saudi Arabian club, was apparently willing to pay a substantial amount to capture Osimhen despite Napoli’s high asking price.
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The striker has now acknowledged that the Saudi Pro League team did express serious interest, even though he finally decided to stay with Napoli.
“It was literally like, ‘Wow,’ seeing these things,” Osimhen remarked to The Obi One Podcast, “the more I said no to these people [in Saudi Arabia], the more they increased it and increased it.”
“I talked to the supervisors and my club about it, and after determining what we could do, my club and I made the decision.
I told them, ‘I like these people, I want to stay, I don’t think I want to leave.'” They recognized my perspective, but they persisted until their own transfer window [closed].
“Even before we played our season’s opening game, I told them, ‘It’s done.’ I truly didn’t want to go back believing that it was going to be a tremendous, incredible game that would alter my life.
Naturally, though, I also had to choose the best choice for my profession. Even though we play football for cash, there are other benefits as well.”
Osimhen, who is now recovering from a hamstring injury, is still being linked to leaving Napoli, with Chelsea and Liverpool expressing interest.
Former Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel said in his interview with Osimhen that he would like the 24-year-old to finalize his transfer to Mauricio Pochettino’s team.
Less than two years remain on Osimhen’s contract, and talks to sign a new contract with Napoli are not going well.
