Super Eagles striker Victor Osimhen has revealed that he was pressured into joining Napoli in the summer of 2020 from Ligue 1 side Lille, despite his initial reluctance.
Osimhen made the switch to Napoli in 2020 for €75 million, becoming Africa’s second most expensive player at the time, behind Ivory Coast’s Nicolas Pépé, who had moved to Arsenal a season earlier.
The €75m fee has long been the subject of scrutiny in Italy, with allegations that the deal was inflated. Although Napoli were eventually cleared of wrongdoing and the sporting investigation dropped, Italian financial authorities continue to probe the controversial transfer.
Recently released documents include excerpts from Osimhen’s testimony, where the forward admitted he never wanted to leave Lille at the time, as he was focused on his father’s failing health.
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“The agent I had before told me that Napoli had serious interest, but he was only interested in my transfer, whereas my mind at the time was entirely on my father’s health. I just wanted to know how he was doing,” Osimhen said during investigations.
“Following my father’s death, I was very angry with both Lille and my agent, because I didn’t get to see him before he died. They had even told me I had to leave the day after for Naples, without even giving me time to deal with the death of my father.”
“Out of respect for the Lille President, I went to Naples anyway, but I was not ready to sign anything. I met the coach, who explained the project, and then the day after President Aurelio De Laurentiis in Capri. He told me about the city and the club, but I couldn’t understand what he was saying with (director Cristiano) Giuntoli, because they spoke in Italian.
“He asked me if I had seen the contract yet, but I hadn’t received anything. When I got back to the hotel, I asked my agent if I could see the contract, but he said he didn’t have it. I was stunned, because the President told me that he did.
“Eventually, he showed me a piece of paper with some pseudo-agreement with Napoli. I got angry and wanted to return to France. I asked Lopez for a week to rest and went to Paris. Once I returned to Lille, I decided to break off my working relationship with that agent.”
“Seeing that Napoli really were interested, I asked William D’Avila to take care of my transfer. Towards the end of July, I signed the contract in Lille, in the presence of Maurizio Micheli for Napoli, and amongst others D’Avila, Lopez, Ingla, Calenda and Cros.”
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