Napoli boss Luciano Spalletti said that "there is nothing concrete at the moment" when asked about a possible deal for Cristiano Ronaldo before the end of the transfer window.
The 37-year-old, who was again named on the bench for Manchester United's clash with Southampton on Saturday, seemingly remains determined to leave Old Trafford before the transfer deadline.
Napoli have recently been credited with an interest in the Portugal international, and there have been suggestions that he could join the Serie A outfit on loan for the 2022-23 campaign.
There has also been talk surrounding Victor Osimhen, with the Nigeria international potentially being part of the deal, although his agent Roberto Calenda took to Twitter on Friday to deny the rumours.
"No negotiations in progress, no swaps. Victor Osimhen is a Napoli player and wants to play the Champions League with Napoli after winning it on the pitch with pride together with the coach and his teammates," said Calenda.
© Reuters
Spalletti has said that he would be interested in working with Ronaldo, but the 63-year-old has insisted that there is nothing imminent regarding the experienced forward.
"If you're asking me if I'd like to work with Ronaldo, I tell you no coach would say no to that. However, if we go into those areas the journalists like to fill in for themselves, then as Osimhen's agent said, there are no negotiations," Spalletti told reporters.
"Speaking to (President Aurelio) De Laurentiis, he told me that he received no offer, so let's remain as realistic as possible here and take into consideration only things that could happen.
"There are only a few days left in the transfer window, it seems unlikely that could go through. There is nothing concrete at the moment.
"It wouldn't be a swap, it would be two different signings, in that case. One of the two can turn a game by himself. But in any case, at the moment we should not consider things that won't help us pick up three points in Florence.
© Reuters
"Osimhen is the one who has to be the protagonist there. With a player like Osimhen, who is so talented, we know there is the permanent risk that some rich owner around the world will wake up in the morning and decide to buy him and that includes a club like Manchester United."
Ronaldo has only started one of Man United's opening four games of the 2022-23 Premier League campaign, with the Portuguese coming off the bench in their last two fixtures with Liverpool and Southampton.
Speaking after the clash with the Saints, Red Devils boss Erik ten Hag said that he was still planning to have Ronaldo at the club for the 2022-23 season.
However, there remains speculation surrounding the Portuguese, who is allegedly keen to leave in order to continue playing in the Champions League this term.
Osimhen, meanwhile, has started the current campaign in impressive form for Napoli, scoring twice and providing one assist in two Serie A appearances.
