Napoli Interest in Arsenal Duo Can Lead to Osimhen Swap Deal
By Kavin Kumar
Reports from Italy suggest that Arsenal and Napoli might soon indulge in a swap deal involving key players. If the move comes to fruition Victor Osimhen might soon sport the Arsenal jersey.
A Transfer Deal Benefitting Arsenal, Osimhen and Napoli
According to Italian outlet Corriere dello Sport, Napoli might be interested in the Arsenal players Emile Smith Rowe and Takehiro Tomiyasu. Smith Rowe in particular is facing an uncertain future at the club. He has been the subject of interest from many English clubs, with Fulham making him a priority target. Mikel Arteta might be reluctant to let Tomiyasu go as he is the best 1V1 defender at the club and can take on tricky wingers. But both players have suffered from injury issues in the past and that might convince the Gunners to sell the pair. It is to be noted that Tomiyasu has the experience of playing in Serie A while he was at Bologna.
Napoli are open to selling Osimhen but would want his release clause to be paid in full. His release clause is believed to be around £110 million. So far, no club has submitted an offer as the money demanded by Napoli is considered too high. Hence, there is a possibility of negotiating a swap deal with Arsenal that would allow Osimhen to ply his trade at the Emirates next season.
Osimhen is expecting an offer from either Arsenal or Saudi Arabia. An Arsenal move is more tempting for the player than a transfer to Saudi Arabia. But only the Saudi clubs will be ready to pay his entire release clause. Arsenal are looking for a lethal striker and Osimhen might be the right man for obvious reasons. He won the Serie A Best Striker: 2022–23 award after scoring 26 league goals and helped Napoli win the Serie A last season. This season he has scored 15 goals from 25 matches. The Nigerian forward has often been compared to Chelsea legend Didier Drogba due to their similar playing style.
Arsenal are also evaluating other striker targets, but the prospect of Victor Osimhen playing for Arsenal is quite exciting and the fans would love to see him link up with the likes of Saka and Odegaard.