Victor Osimhen has been named among the 30 nominees for the 2023 Ballon D’or Award following a breakthrough season with Napoli that saw him register 31 goals in all competitions
Super Eagles striker Victor Osimhen is still on the radar of Premier League side Chelsea, who are still monitoring his contract situation at Napoli ahead of the January transfer window, Soccernet.ng reports.
The 24-year-old has had an incredible year for the Partenopei, notching 26 goals in Serie A, in addition to another 5 in the Champions League to help Napoli to a first league title in 33 years, and also the last eight in Europe’s top tier competition for the first time in their history.
His remarkable performances have since caught the eyes of the biggest clubs in Europe, with the likes of Manchester United, Bayern Munich, and Chelsea reported to have shown an interest in him in the summer transfer window.
Osimhen was also the subject of a big offer from the Middle East, with Saudi Arabian giants Al Hilal reported to have sent two bids to Napoli, but the offers were rejected immediately by the club President Aurelio De Laurentiis, who has since openly declared that the 24-year-old will not be leaving the club any time soon.
The former Lille striker has since made an impressive start to the new season, scoring 3 goals from 4 games so far, with reports suggesting he is close to signing a new deal that will keep him at Naples beyond his current deal.
However, the latest report has revealed that Chelsea are still considering making a huge move for Osimhen in the January transfer window, as reported by the Chelsea Chronicle.
The report also revealed further that the North London club is still monitoring his contract situation at Napoli, having been previous links to him in the just-closed summer transfer window.
It’s understood that the 24-year-old is one of several top strikers that the Blues are considering to sign in January.
Chelsea have been working on improving their squad since the takeover by a group led by American businessman Todd Boehly, with their spending under his management closing to £1Billion since July 2022.
Although they have brought in Nicolas Jackson and Christopher Nkunku to add to their attacking ranks this summer, it has been reported that the American is still willing to pay close to around £200m in bringing the Nigerian International to England in January.
Osimhen has continued to enjoy the remarkable year 2023 in his career having been recently recognized among the 30 nominees for the 2023 Ballon d’Or Award alongside the likes of Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe, and Erling Haaland, among others.
He has been called up to the national side for Nigeria’s dead rubber Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Sao Tome and Principe in Uyo on Sunday, leading the goalscoring chart with 7 goals, including four haul in the first leg against the Central African country.
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