The Chelsea striker’s search will not involve an offer for Napoli striker Victor Osimhen, who is reportedly valued at £111m. Enzo Maresca needs to strengthen three key positions as a priority this summer, which will force Les Bleus to spend wisely and waste their entire budget on a single player.
Osimhen is a star worth striving for, having reached double numbers in 2023/24 for the sixth consecutive league season, but Napoli ensured this was unreasonable by placing a nine-figure release clause on his contract.
Although Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis has brazenly admitted that Osimhen will leave the club this summer, movement expert Fabrizio Romano says one move for the Nigerian is not to be at Chelsea.
The Londoners, led by new manager Maresca, are expected to go after a striker, but they may simply prioritise one more option to free up budget for other spaces that want attention.
Reports imply that Maresca is keen to sign three key signings this summer: a striker, a left-back and a goalkeeper. In terms of Osimhen, RB Leipzig’s Benjamin Sesko and Brentford star Ivan Toney have all been linked with moves to Stamford Bridge.
Both Manchester United and Arsenal should be interested in Osimhen, who, according to De Laurentiis, is headed to Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain or the Premier League.
But Chelsea’s lack of interest may only be a blow to the player, given that he has brazenly admitted to “dreaming” of betting on the most sensible English flight after watching Blues legend Didier Drogba grow up.
Maresca is keen to make room for the signing of a new striker by getting rid of two of the club’s existing strikers. Armando Broja and Romelu Lukaku ended up last season on loan at Fulham and AS Roma respectively, and it turns out that neither of them will most likely do so. To play for Chelsea again.
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The Blues need £30m for Broja, who has not been able to make it to the Fulham team due to Rodrigo Muniz’s great goalscoring form, and £38m for Lukaku, who among Roma’s targets would possibly not have left for long. 31 before this month.
Chelsea will sell Broja until June 30, the deadline for clubs to comply with benefits and sustainability (PSR) rules, while they assess interest from England, Italy, Germany and France.
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