It’s very rare for agents to publicly speak out about transfer rumours, but it seems Victor Osimhen’s Italian representative, Roberto Calenda, felt there was a need to on Friday.
Stories emerged on Friday that Manchester United were interested in the Nigeria international following Jorge Mendes attempts to place Cristiano Ronaldo at Napoli.
It seemed a bit far-fetched, in that the Red Devils would end up paying a huge fee for the striker and a chunk of the Portuguese’s wages to offload him to Naples, but they continued to circulate, with others picking up on it.
Then came an interview with Oma Akatugba, claiming to be very close to Osimhen, who made it clear the player had told him he was looking forward to playing in the Champions League with Napoli.
Nessuna trattativa in corso, nessuno scambio.
Victor Osimhen è un giocatore del Napoli e vuole giocare la Champions col suo Napoli dopo averla conquistata sul campo con orgoglio insieme a mister e compagni. @victorosimhen9 #teamRC— Roberto Calenda (@RobertoCalenda) August 26, 2022
This is something Manchester United cannot offer him, having finished sixth in the Premier League last season, thus qualifying for the Europa League.
Calenda echoed this on Twitter, making the situation very clear, writing ‘no negotiations in progress, no swaps, Victor Osimhen is a Napoli player and wants to play the Champions League with his Napoli after winning it on the pitch with pride together with the coach and his teammates’.
Following that, unless something drastic changes, it appears a move to Manchester United is off the cards, at least this season.
