Chelsea to challenge United for Victor Osimhen’s signature

Manchester United’s plan to add Victor Osimhen to their attacking line in the summer could be thwarted by big-spending Chelsea.

Ever since his arrival in England, Todd Boehly, Chelsea’s co-owner, hasn’t shied away from ruffling a few feathers in the transfer market. Last summer, the American went head-to-head with Barcelona for Raphinha and Jules Koundé – although the Spanish giants came out on top on both occasions.

In January, Chelsea again opted for an aggressive approach and hijacked Arsenal’s pursuit of Mykhailo Mudryk by agreeing to pay an initial £62m upfront and £26.5m in add-ons to Shakhtar Donetsk for the Ukrainian winger.

And if a report from English outlet talkSPORT is to be believed, another roller coaster of a window is being planned at Stamford Bridge that could have an impact on the transfer business of yet another rival club.

Erik ten Hag wants United to bring in a reliable goal-scorer at the end of the season and Victor Osimhen is a top target ahead of the summer window.

Tottenham Hotspur chairman Daniel Levy’s reluctance to let Harry Kane move to a Premier League rival has seen United’s interest in Osimhen intensify.

Aurelio De Laurentiis-led Napoli are not going to be pushovers, and are in a strong position to demand more than £100m for the 24-year-old, who has two years left on his contract. The Nigerian is leading Napoli in its bid for its first Serie A title since 1990, contributing 16 goals in 17 league appearances.

How United consider that £100m figure could change depending on who is the club’s owner come the end of the season. But it’s clear that the Chelsea hierarchy don’t see the said price tag as a major stumbling block due to Boehly’s “pay whatever it takes” approach.