It has come to light that Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis responded in an unusual manner to Al-Hilal’s substantial offer for Victor Osimhen, Soccernet.ng reports.
Saudi Arabian powerhouse Al-Hilal aggressively pursued Victor Osimhen during the summer transfer window.
They swiftly took the lead in the race for Osimhen after several European clubs balked at Napoli’s lofty financial demands for the Nigerian striker.
Prominent names like Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool, Real Madrid, and Bayern Munich had shown interest, yet none were willing to meet Napoli’s valuation for the 24-year-old forward. The only official bid came from PSG, a €100 million offer Napoli promptly rejected.
However, Al-Hilal unexpectedly became the front-runners for Osimhen’s signature, making two successive bids, the larger of which reportedly reached €140 million.
They also presented Osimhen with a salary package that would have made him the highest-earning African player in history. Nevertheless, Napoli turned down both offers.
Now, it has been revealed that Napoli’s president, Aurelio De Laurentiis, reacted mockingly to Al-Hilal’s offers.
According to L’Équipe (as per Tutto Napoli), De Laurentiis made light of the Saudi club’s proposals, even dismissing oral offers worth €200 million.
De Laurentiis did not stop there; he went on to send a sarcastic email to the intermediaries representing the Saudi club, stating,
“With your offering, you can only buy one foot of Osimhen. For next year, I think you will be able to offer 500 million, and we will probably consider your offer, but I emphasise ‘maybe’,” explained the Napoli owner.
Victor Osimhen, who scored 26 league goals last season, played a pivotal role in Napoli’s first Scudetto title in 33 years. The Super Eagles striker has already netted three goals in as many games for the Serie A champions.
