One of the most sought-after strikers in soccer at the moment, Victor Osimhen, has sensationally fallen out with his current employers Napoli, just a few months after he helped them to Serie A glory.
What Has Transpired Between Victor Osimhen & Napoli?
Osimhen, who scored 26 Serie A goals en route to Napoli’s league win last season, has been an unabashed starter under newly appointed manager Rudi Garcia. While the relationship between the manager looked fine at first glance, prominent cracks appeared during Napoli’s goalless draw with Bologna over the weekend.
Garcia took Osimhen off in the 86th minute, bringing Giovanni Simeone in his place. Garcia’s decision did not sit well with Osimhen, who seemingly berated his manager on his way out. Shortly after the game, Napoli’s official TikTok account posted a video of the Nigerian striker, mocking his penalty miss against Bologna in the 72nd minute.
🇳🇬 This was the original video posted by Napoli about Victor Osimhen… and then deleted.
⚠️ …player’s agent Calenda announced that Osimhen is considering to take legal action against Napoli. pic.twitter.com/0PLunco9aD
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) September 26, 2023
Napoli’s TikTok account deleted the video shortly after, but the damage had already been done.
What Is Osimhen’s Response To The Video?
Although Osimhen has not yet commented on the video himself, it is clear that he has not taken the mocking lightly. On Tuesday (September 26), Osimhen’s agent Roberto Calenda slammed Napoli for the disrespectful video, stating that Osimhen’s entourage would not shy away from taking the legal route if required.
Taking to social networking channel X, Calenda said (via The Guardian):
“What happened today on Napoli’s official profile on the TikTok platform is not acceptable. A video mocking Victor was first made public and then, but now belatedly, deleted.
“A serious fact that causes very serious damage to the player and adds to the treatment that the boy is suffering in the last period between media trials and fake news.”
He further added:
“We reserve the right to take legal action and any useful initiative to protect Victor.”
The controversy surrounding their best player does not do Napoli any favors. They have endured a sub-par start to the 2023-24 Serie A campaign, picking up just eight points from their first five games so far. The Partenopei are on a three-game winless run at the moment, and they do not seem to be equipped to come out of their slump without their talisman.
Osimhen, meanwhile, will not have a shortage of suitors if he decides to part ways with the Italian champions in the January transfer window. According to reports, Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) are both interested in Osimhen, while Chelsea could also join the race to add more firepower to their ranks.
It will be interesting to see how the Osimhen-Napoli saga unfolds in the coming days.
Add Sportslens to your Google News Feed!
