I could seal huge Chelsea transfer with 'just one phone call' - but Man Utd might buy me for £64m instead

Chelsea are said to be just one phone call away from landing one of Europe’s most formidable strikers in the upcoming transfer window but they must act quickly to avoid being beaten to the deal by Manchester United.

The summer transfer window is fast approaching and the Blues and the Red Devils, like most teams in the Premier League, are on the hunt for a proven goalscorer that can propel them onto bigger and better things next season.

Chelsea are slowly but surely making strides under Enzo Maresca after a miserable 12th-place finish in the 2022/23 season - Todd Boehly’s first year as owner - and a slightly improved sixth place finish under Mauricio Pochettino before his tenure with the Blues was cut short after just one season. The West London outfit are fourth in the Premier League with 53 points, leaving them firmly on course to achieve Champions League football, although their poor form since the 19th December of just five wins from their last 15 league matches will leave a few alarm bells ringing as the likes of Newcastle United, Manchester City and Aston Villa all aim to muscle their way into Europe’s elite competition next season.

Meanwhile, at United talk of even a Europa Conference League finish through the league is completely off the cards, with their only hope of securing football on the continent now resting entirely on their Europa League campaign as they aim to win the competition for the first time since 2017.

Chelsea’s recent dip can perhaps be attributed to injury issues surrounding Nicolas Jackson in recent weeks and the decline in form of the usually reliable Cole Palmer, who has almost single-handedly dragged the team back into Europe since his arrival from the Etihad.

United on the other hand have much less luxuries at their disposal with Bruno Fernandes and the now injured Amad Diallo being the only true shining light in a season which has been clouded by Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee (among others) failing to reach the required expectations.

That could all change in the coming months though if they are able to get their hands on Napoli forward Victor Osimhen, who is expected to be on the market once again after a solid goalscoring campaign out on loan in Turkey.

Chelsea hope to sign Victor Osimhen this summer

Former Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel claims the Stamford Bridge side are “one phone call” away from getting their hands on Victor Osimhen. The 26-year-old has long been on the radar of a number of top English clubs after firing in 76 goals in 133 appearances for Napoli - including 31 across all competitions in the 2022/23 season as the Naples outfit lifted their first league title since 1990 when Diego Maradona starred for the club.

Osimhen is blessed with excellent speed, strength, hold up play and the ability to score bags of goals. The Blues have lacked a striker for a number of seasons and have to go back to the days of Diego Costa for their last striker to reach the 20 goal mark in the league.

The Mirror reports that a figure of £64m will be required to sign the Nigerian international, who has scored an impressive 28 goals in 32 appearances during his loan spell at Galatasaray.

"Listen, it will be really sad if we don't get a player who supported us as a kid and wants to play for this football club," said Mikel when discussing Osimhen on the The Obi One Podcast.

"His idol is Drogba. He will want to break records, win us trophies, get us back to the top, and come for Drogba's records. I'm telling you, that would be his mission.”

Could Man Utd get their hands on Victor Osimhen?

Manchester United are not expected to be competing in Europe next season, but they remain firmly focused on establishing themselves as a force in English football in the near future and have lofty aspirations of being crowned league champions by 2028.

United’s striker duo of Joshua Zirkzee and Rasmus Hoijlund have scored just six goals between them and have been hugely disappointing for the combined £108m that has been spent on them. Sky Germany states that United have drawn up a four-man wishlist for the summer window, with Osimhen's name among them.

"They need five new players straight away before you even think about the rest of it. The three up front are not good enough, and the two wing-backs, they're not good enough," Gary Neville stated on Sky Sports.

"They need five players. They need to serve him [Amorim] with five players who are good enough in this system to be able to play his system the way he wants."

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