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Victor Osimhen attracted interest from prominent European clubs this summer. Nevertheless, Napoli was resolute in retaining the Nigerian player and wanted to keep him as an integral part of their squad. Osimhen, on the other hand, was close to extending the contract, but somewhere it "stopped".
The president of the club, Aurelio de Laurentiis, commented on why the negotiations stopped. Aurelio emphasized that if the player wants to change the club, he will not stand in his way. ‘I have never been unhappy towards Osimhen, but there are always two of us in these things.
I have remained the same, if his mood has changed [over a new deal] I can’t do anything about it.' - Napoli president said, as quoted by METRO! It is certain that Napoli would like it if Osimhen stayed, but they are aware that they cannot do anything in that regard.
‘If things change after a handshake, it’s disappointing, we take note of it but then life goes on. There are excellent relations with him, the contract expires in 2025, there is time. Don’t forget that I sold Koulibaly [to Chelsea] a year before his contract expired.’
SS Napoli issued a statement
The Napoli club issued a statement regarding this situation.
They emphasized in their message that the president of the club was never negatively directed towards Osimhen. ‘President De Laurentiis never shared any negative comment about Victor,’ Napoli said. ‘He just said that after verbally agreeing on plan to sign new deal, Osimhen changed his mind.
Osimhen wanted to sign a new contract, but over time he changed his mind. We hope it’s just stand-by moment to think about it. In the next weeks we will discuss with his agent [Roberto] Calenda about the future. Reports of a tense situation between Napoli and Osimhen are 100% wide of the mark.’