Lille Metropole of France striker, Victor Osimhen has received encouraging words from a top shot at his French Ligue 1 club, with a positive push for him to accept the transfer offer put on the table before him by AS Napoli of Italy, megasportsarena.com reports.
With the prolonged transfer saga that is billed to take Osimhen from Lille to Napoli entering a new chapter, following his decision to sack his former agent and employ another one to help him iron out the deal, the striker has been told that moving to the Italian Serie A club would be an exceptional opportunity for his career and his family.
This is the verdict coming from Lille’s general manager, Marc Ingla, who stressed that the deal with Napoli is a big transfer opportunity that would tremendously benefit Osimhen and his family financially; as it is a five-year contract that will fetch him at least four million Euro a year.
While admitting that Lille also stand to gain immensely once Osimhen finally makes the move to Naples, Ingla said he is not ashamed to admit that they are a selling club; hence their decision to seek a fee in the range of €80m for the Chile 2015 FIFA U-17 World Cup top scorer.
Ingla retorted: “For him and his family, this can be an exceptional opportunity. We must not only consider the amount of the transfer, but also the salary that is offered to the player. We are not hiding our economic model. We are not a final destination. With us, players thrive. We use their talent. But we also build their careers. It is the life of a club and the market.”
However, this comes at a point updated reports indicated that Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool of England had resumed pressure on Osimhen to make the switch to London, while their English Premier League rivals, Manchester United are also said to have upped their efforts to secure a deal for the Lille forward.
After netting 18 times across all competitions during his first season with the Ligue 1 outfit, Osimhen is attracting attention from far and wide, and the report out of Queensland adds that Lille have made him available for any willing EPL club at a fee in the region of £45m.
CalcioNapoli24 added that United have made contact with Osimhen’s representatives to discuss the likelihood of the 21-year-old player, as The Red Devils are in search of more options down the middle of their attack and Odion Jude Ighalo is due to leave Old Trafford in January.
It was further gathered that Osimhen’s new agent, William D’Avila of DW Sports Management has requested more time for the youngster to make a decision over his next move due to late approaches by Tottenham, United and Liverpool, which Sportitalia reports have changed the lad’s line of thought.
Though Ingla admitted that the Osimhen transfer saga is long drawn and keeps getting thorny with each passing day, the Lille top shot assured that the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations bronze medalist will surely make the move and added: “We are in the last stage. The player has made his choice. It is a regret to see him leave but we must be aware of the strength of the market.”
