John Obi Mikel has now claimed he is Victor Osimhen’s ‘agent’ and believes the SSC Napoli striker would ‘love’ to join Chelsea over any transfer to Arsenal this summer.
The 25-year-old is primed to play a prominent role in the summer sales as clubs from across Europe prepare moves. Osimhen has interest from many of the continent’s elite clubs, even though Napoli only just locked him down with a new contract until June 2026 in December.
Teams will look to test the Azzurri’s resolve as Osimhen has confirmed he wants to leave the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona. The Evening Standard also reports that Chelsea have now placed Osimhen at the top of their shortlist with the Blues eager to sign another new striker.
Arsenal will look to rival Chelsea for Victor Osimhen’s summer transfer
Napoli are at risk of losing Osimhen, despite his new terms, as his contract includes a £113m release clause. Paris Saint-Germain are also preparing to rival Chelsea’s interest with the 27-cap Nigerian scoring 13 goals and assisting four over 21 games in all competitions this term.
While HITC Football’s transfer expert Graeme Bailey also exclusively told Arsenal Insider this January that the Gunners will be ‘ones to watch’ for Osimhen’s transfer from Napoli, as well. The Blues are even ‘fearful’ of which teams enter the race with Arsenal able to afford a deal.
John Obi Mikel claims Victor Osimhen ‘loves’ and wants to join Chelsea
But former Chelsea midfielder Obi Mikel has now claimed that Osimhen would ‘love’ to join the Stamford Bridge side. He even claims the Blues hero is his compatriot’s ‘agent’ and that Osimhen is fond of the idea of living in London over potentially moving to Liverpool one day.
“I’m still his ‘agent’,” Obi Mikel claimed at Web Summit Qatar, via Ben Jacobs. “I’m trying to get him to Chelsea, so I’ve got 20% of that deal. Let’s hope it works out.
“I think there is a genuine interest from both. He loves the club and wants to come to the club, obviously following in my footsteps as a Nigerian player to play for Chelsea, like Victor Moses and Celestine Babayaro.
“He’s looked at London, as well, as a fantastic city, instead of going to Liverpool. But he also has interest from Paris Saint-Germain, Manchester United but I’m still pushing and sending him messages. I hope he comes to the club because he will bring so much.”
Paris Saint-Germain view Victor Osimhen as a prime Kylian Mbappe heir
Osimhen has even attracted interest from Real Madrid, according to Football Transfers, with the Napoli star highly sought-after. So, Arsenal will have their work cut out to try and tempt the striker to switch to Emirates Stadium and secure boss Mikel Arteta an out-and-out No9.
Paris Saint-Germain also view Osimhen as one of their top targets to replace Kylian Mbappe this summer, according to The Athletic. The Ligue 1 team see the striker as a leading target with Mbappe likely to leave the Parc des Princes for free when his contract expires in June.
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