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Napoli have told Chelsea that they are willing to lower their asking price for Victor Osimhen, according to reports in Italy.
The Serie A club have agreed to let Osimhen leave this summer but their president, Aurelio de Laurentiis, is holding out for a team to trigger the Nigeria international’s €130m (£110.8m) clause.
Chelsea, Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain have already registered their interest ahead of the summer window but so far no one has indicated that they are prepared to meet Napoli’s demand.
That has left the Italian side in a predicament as they are relying on Osimhen’s transfer fee to help offset their summer spending, which includes a deal for Romelu Lukaku.
Antonio Conte has already received assurances that his other key players at Napoli, including Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, who impressed for Georgia at Euro 2024, Giovanni Di Lorenzo, Frank Anguissa and Stanislav Lobotka will not be sold.
Napoli have opened talks with Chelsea over a deal for Lukaku but the Premier League club are not open to another loan and had initially held out for a team to meet the Belgium international’s £38m release clause.
According to Corriere dello Sport, Lukaku wants to be reunited with Conte at Napoli and Chelsea would now be prepared to accept a lower fee for the 31-year-old in the region of €25m (£21.1m) in order for the deal to go through.
The report claims that during their discussions, Napoli have made it known that they would be open to reducing their valuation of Osimhen to €100m (£84.6m).
However, that figure is still regarded as too high by Chelsea, who had agreed a £42m fee with Aston Villa for their Colombian striker Jhon Duran last month.
Osimhen, meanwhile, still has the opportunity to join the Saudi Pro League but prefers to remain in Europe having rejected a move to the Middle East last year.
Speaking at his unveiling as Napoli’s new head coach last week, Conte made it clear that Osimhen has an agreement to leave the club.
‘I know what the situation is regarding Osimhen. I know that there are agreements, that it is a situation different from all the others. I can only assist,’ Conte said.
‘He is a player of the highest level, exceptional, but I cannot enter into any discussion because it is part of previous agreements which have been clearly stated to me.’
Conte made it clear that he is also keen to have Lukaku in his squad but Napoli face competition from AC Milan, who are also in talks with Chelsea over a possible deal.
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