Victor Osimhen must ‘compromise’ on his wages if he is to join Chelsea this summer.
The Blues are in the market for a striker in the final few days of the transfer window, despite already bolstering their forward ranks with the additions of Pedro Neto, Marc Guiu and Joao Felix.
Enzo Maresca has made it no secret that he is keen to continue adding to his squad, with several striker options being shortlisted to compete with Nicolas Jackson for the No. 9 spot in his starting 11.
Napoli’s Osimhen is widely regarded as Chelsea’s top target, with the forward desperate to leave the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium before the transfer window closes on Friday.
However, the Nigeria international will need to amend his wage demands if he is to make the move to Chelsea this summer. According to GiveMeSport, Napoli are expecting a bid from the Blues imminently following fresh rounds of talks.
The Serie A outfit have dropped their asking price for the ex-Lille star in order to facilitate his exit, and Osimhen will have to do the same with his requested salary if he is to put pen to paper with Chelsea.
The Blues are said to only be willing to press on in talks with the 25-year-old if he will accept an ‘incentive-driven’ wage. They are open to making the forward one of the highest earners at Stamford Bridge but his current demands are too high.
If Osimhen does not make it clear that he is open to negotiating a different financial structure then the Blues will move on to alternative options.
Chelsea recently reignited their interest in Brentford’s Ivan Toney as part of their striker search. The England international is keen to leave the Gtech Community Stadium this week and has held exploratory talks with a host of clubs.
Saudi side Al Ahli are keen to sign the forward, alongside Osimhen, and have reportedly offered the striker a £16million per season contract if he heads to the Middle East.
However, they have not struck an agreement with Brentford at this stage, seeing a £35m bid knocked back previously.
Brentford are holding out for an offer in the region of £50m, despite their No. 17 being in the final 12 months of his contract with the club and showing no signs of penning an extension.