Victor Osimhen's contract talks with Italian champions Napoli have reportedly hit a standstill amid interest from both Liverpool and Chelsea.
The Nigeria international has experienced a turbulent start to the 2023-24 season, scoring six goals in eight Serie A games but being plagued by a host of off-field distractions.
Osimhen's representative threatened to take legal action against Napoli last month after the club posted two insulting videos about the striker on TikTok, one mocking his penalty miss against Bologna while another compared him to a coconut.
Napoli insisted that they never intended to cause harm to Osimhen, whose tensions with head coach Rudi Garcia also boiled over when he was substituted in the aforementioned game with Bologna.
Earlier this month, president Aurelio de Laurentiis also revealed that the Partenopei had shaken hands with Osimhen over a new contract, only for the striker to have second thoughts before putting pen to paper.
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De Laurentiis hinted that he would sanction Osimhen's sale in 2024 before he entered the final year of his contract, leading some media outlets to speculate that the pair had a frosty relationship.
Napoli denied that was the case and claimed that their president's words were distorted, but the series of controversies have inevitably added fuel to the fire regarding Osimhen's future with the Serie A champions.
Both Liverpool and Chelsea are understood to be casting a watchful eye over developments, and according to Calciomercato, both clubs could be encouraged by a recent contract impasse.
Negotiations are ongoing between De Laurentiis and Osimhen's camp to extend his stay beyond the summer of 2025, but the two parties are allegedly struggling to agree on some key terms of the renewal.
Osimhen is believed to earn around €4.5m (£3.9m) a year in wages at Napoli and wants his salary doubled to €9m (£7.8m) to reflect his importance, but De Laurentiis is not giving such an increase the green light.
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Furthermore, the Partenopei chief reportedly wants to insert a mammoth €200m (£174.3m) release clause into any new terms, which Osimhen's agents are not on board with, as they want a cheaper option to ensure a simple escape route.
Should Napoli and Osimhen fail to reach an agreement by the time spring rolls around, Chelsea and Liverpool - the latter of whom are said to have already made contact several times - could step up their interest in bringing the ex-Lille man to the Premier League.
Osimhen arrived in Naples for €75m (£65.4m) in the summer of 2020, and the 24-year-old has found the net 65 times in 115 games for his current club, in addition to providing 15 assists.
The Nigerian took home the Capocannoniere with a league-high 26 goals in 32 Serie A games during Napoli's run to the title last season, which also earned him a nomination for the 2023 Ballon d'Or.
However, Osimhen has missed Napoli's last two games with a hamstring injury sustained during the international break, and the Italian champions may be forced to cope without their star striker for the whole of November.
Ben Knapton
