Napoli chief went to extreme lengths to deny Liverpool Victor Osimhen
According to Football Italia (h/t Liverpool Echo), Premier League giants Liverpool were trumped to the signing of Victor Osimhen by SSC Napoli in 2020.
The Nigerian ace is today amongst the best strikers in world football and is being eyed by several top clubs. He led Napoli to their first Scudetto since the Diego Maradona era and has solidified his standing as a legend in the city.
His career could have taken a different turn had Liverpool managed to secure him in 2020. Then at Ligue 1 club LOSC Lille, Osimhen was beginning to show his ability to consistently find the back of the net.
In the summer of 2020, Liverpool were in the market for an attacker to supplement their frontline of Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino, and Mohamed Salah. Adding Osimhen to the triad would have amplified Klopp’s firepower multi-fold.
Our hopes, however, were dashed by Napoli. The club’s director Cristiano Giuntoli consigned Osimhen inside a hotel to prevent him from choosing us over them. The ploy worked and today he is a living legend in Naples. This was revealed by his former collaborator Giandomenico Costi.
“The signing of Osimhen is Giuntoli’s biggest masterpiece. He [Osimhen] was locked in a hotel for three days. Giuntoli knew Liverpool were interested, and Jurgen Klopp had made his move, but Cristiano spoke to Osimhen in the hotel for three days until he convinced him to accept Napoli.”
The Reds eventually went on to secure Diogo Jota’s signature that summer. The Portuguese superstar has fit in well at Anfield and is a versatile addition to the frontline. While we might have missed out on Osimhen, Jota has not been a bad addition at all.
It is unclear just how strong Liverpool’s interest was in securing Osimhen’s signature that summer. But then it would appear Napoli wanted him more and were ready to secure him by any means. We can’t begrudge them that.
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Securing the 24-year-old could have come in handy in last season’s campaign. After all, we were just two wins away from completing football in one campaign. We could have done with a player of Osimhen’s ability. While we can still go back in for him, the Nigerian ace will cost much more.
