Chelsea are closing in on the sale of Romelu Lukaku to Napoli, which ‘could finally open the door’ to sign Victor Osimhen, according to reports.
Osimhen has entered the last two years of his Napoli contract and is expected to leave this summer.
Lukaku, meanwhile, is surplus to requirements at Stamford Bridge and not training with the first team.
Chelsea paid a whopping £97.5million for the Belgian striker in the 2021 summer transfer window but he ended up being a big ol’ flop, being loaned out to Inter after a year back at the club.
The Blues have been working all summer on Lukaku’s exit, with 2022/23 Serie A champions Napoli deep in talks to sign him and getting very close to finalising the transfer.
Chelsea: ‘Romelu Lukaku to Napoli, here we go!’
According to Telegraph Sport, ‘Chelsea and Napoli are working to find an agreement’ to send Lukaku to Naples, which could help the Blues finally land Osimhen in a separate deal.
Talks between the two clubs are ‘ongoing’ as ‘all parties work hard to find a solution’ with Lukaku out of Enzo Maresca’s plans.
Chelsea have been pursuing Osimhen for a couple of years and the sale of their former club-record signing could put their pursuit of a new striker ‘into motion’.
MORE ON CHELSEA FROM F365
👉 Chelsea ‘in talks’ to let transfer record breaker leave for Prem minnows, with one deal required first
👉 Leeds top ranking of biggest sellers in the 2024 summer transfer window
The Londoners have been crying out for an out-and-out centre-forward ever since Lukaku fell out of favour in early 2022.
Speaking this week, new head coach Maresca admitted that a striker will be pursued before the summer transfer window closes.
“If we have a chance to bring in a nine that can help us and make the difference then we’re going to try,” the Italian said. “Otherwise, we are OK.”
The same outlet claimed last November that Osimhen was the club’s ‘top target for the centre-forward position’ and that is still the case.
Chelsea have not given themselves a lot of time to complete a rather complex transfer. Osimhen is, at least, out of Antonio Conte’s plans with Napoli eager to cash in before the end of August.
The Premier League club were close to signing young striker Samu Omorodion from Atletico Madrid but the proposed deal collapsed at the last minute, seeing Chelsea turn to Joao Felix, who joined for £42m this week.
It will be interesting to see how the Blues attack the Osimhen situation with Fabrizio Romano giving Lukaku’s move to Napoli the “there we land” “here we go” treatment.
Romano confirms that there is a “verbal agreement in place” after the Blues accepted a package worth a total of 45 million euros (£38.1m), add-ons included.
He wrote on X: “Romelu Lukaku to Napoli, here we go! Verbal agreement in place between clubs.
“Chelsea accept €30m fixed fee plus add-ons up to €15m for €45m potential package. Permanent transfer brokered by Ali Barat for Epic Sports.
“Lukaku will sign 3 year deal at Napoli until 2027.”
👉 More: Chelsea news | Top 10 available strikers this summer | Premier League five-year net spend table
