Why Victor Osimhen is the Best Striker for Chelsea
Premier League clubs, especially Manchester City, could be in trouble should Chelsea land Victor Osimhen to partner Cole Palmer in attack.
Napoli have identified ₦20 Billion rated striker as a replacement for the departing Victor Osimhen this summer.
Napoli are reportedly showing interest in Crystal Palace striker Jean-Philippe Mateta as they seek to fill the void left by Victor Osimhen’s potential departure.
With plans to offload Osimhen for a substantial fee of around €120-130 million, Napoli are gearing up for a major overhaul in the upcoming transfer window following a disappointing 2023-24 season.
Last season’s Scudetto winners have been so bad this season, that they could miss out on Europe altogether.
According to reports from L’Equipe, the Italian club are sold on the idea of Mateta stepping into Osimhen’s shoes and will initiate discussions with Crystal Palace to explore a potential summer transfer.
Mateta, 26, has scored 13 goals and provided four assists in 34 league appearances under new coach Oliver Glasner.
Osimhen remains certain to depart, with Chelsea and PSG potential destinations for the Super Eagles goal-machine. Napoli have identified ₦20 Billion rated striker as a replacement for the departing Victor Osimhen this summer.
Chelsea’s player of the season, Cole Palmer put in another stellar performance yesterday in the Blues’ 1-2 win at Brighton.
The 21-year-old applied a fine header to guide Marc Cucurella’s cross into the far corner to give Chelsea the lead in the first half – taking his tally to 22 goals in the league this season.
The former Manchester City youngster has also provided 10 assists so far – a number that could have been more but for wasteful finishing by some of his teammates when put through on goal.
Chief culprit in that regard is Senegalese striker Nicolas Jackson. Although the 22-year-old has had a good first campaign, hitting form, especially in the latter stages of the season.
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Jackson has scored 14 league goals (17 across all competitions) this campaign, four more than Chelsea icon Didier Drogba (10) managed in his first Premier League season at Stamford Bridge.
However, his finishing has let him down on many occasions. The Senegalese striker ranks third in terms of big chances missed this season (24). Only Liverpool’s Darwin Nunez (27) and Manchester City’s Erling Haaland (33) have missed more clear-cut opportunities.
Cole Palmer and Victor Osimhen partnership – Will it happen?
Napoli striker Victor Osimhen had announced earlier that he would leave I Partenopei at the end of the season, with two clubs (PSG and Chelsea) in the running to land the big center forward.
With the imminent departure of Kylian Mbappe, PSG need a marquee signing to replace their record goalscorer, who has served them for seven years.
Meanwhile, Chelsea, although boosted by the return of Nkuku from injury, still need an out-and-out striker who will guarantee 20+ goals a season.
In the absence of a prolific striker, Cole Palmer has shouldered the responsibility of providing the goals and creating chances this season; this even led to Chelsea being termed ‘Cole Palmer FC.’