Former Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel has revealed that Victor Osimhen was ‘very, very close’ to joining Chelsea this summer.
The Nigerian striker was heavily linked with a move to the Blues throughout the summer transfer window, with a move to the Premier League his ‘dream’, but the deal fell through on deadline day.
Following the collapse of the Chelsea deal, Osimhen left Napoli for Turkish Super Lig side Galatasaray, on a season-long loan.
Reports suggested that the west London club could not strike a deal with Osimhen due to his high wage demands. However, Mikel claims that such suggestions are categorically false.
Speaking on the Obi One Podcast, he said: ‘I hear a lot of people saying this and saying that about Victor and and how greedy he is, blah, blah, blah. ‘Take a pay cut and come to Chelsea’ blah, blah, blah, stuff like that.
Victor Osimhen joined Galatasaray on loan after a permanent transfer to Chelsea fell through
‘I know the kid. I know the boy. I just want to say that that is absolutely not true. Victor is not a greedy boy. He’s not a greedy guy, he only wants to get what he deserves and that’s not a problem.’
During the window it was understood that Osimhen was looking to net weekly salary of around £500,000, an eye-watering figure.
While the Blues wanted to bring in a striker, it was believed they could not reach such a high figure. But Mikel had a resounding response Osimhen’s reported demands.
‘No, he wasn’t asking for all this b******t,’ added Mikel. ‘I know what happened, I was in the midst of everything. So I can tell everybody that is definitely not true.
‘He just wants to play football and get what he deserves and that’s not a problem. A player knowing what he’s worth and demanding to be paid what he what he’s worth, that’s not a problem.’
The Chelsea legend, Mikel, has previusoly revealed that due to his relationship with Osimhen, he was working with both parties to help make the transfer happen.
The pairs friendship started when Osimhen made his national team debut for Nigeria in 2017, while Mikel was still captain.
With the Blues working hard to get Osimhen through the door on deadline day, the retired midfielder has revealed just how close the club were to completing the transfer.
‘We were very, very close to getting this deal done, but it was just slight issues, slight little problems that we just couldn’t get over the line.
‘I know what the club offered him, we got to finally go to a compromise. Both sides had to compromise. It was just some little things here and there, paperwork, medical, and few issues that we just couldn’t get over the line.’
Behind the scenes, working on the deal took it’s toll on Mikel who seemingly worked tirelessly to try and make the transfer happen.
‘I was the guy right in the middle of everything,’ Mikel continued. ‘There were couple of days I didn’t sleep. Thursday, I didn’t sleep. On Friday, I didn’t sleep.
‘I’m here in Dubai, it’s about three, four hours different, so I have to wait for phone calls, I think in the middle of the night.
‘On Thursday, I slept around 4am in the morning because I was waiting for phone call from this side and phone call from that side.’
Chelsea were not the only club interested in Osimhen over the summer. Saudi Arabian club Al-Ahli tabled a £55million bid in order to secures his services, but =the striker rejected their advances.
With options at his disposal, Osimhen had a decision to make, and Mikel has claimed that there was only one destination that the striker really wanted to go.
‘I said we have to send somebody down to see Victor, and that will change the way he sees things, and then he will understand how much the club wants him to come.
The club sends somebody to Naples and try to speak to Victor and his agent to make sure we get the deal done. It just shows how much the club were willing to have the player, and how eager the club were willing to get Victor.
‘I know he really wanted to come to the club, because he still knows he has a lot to prove in Europe.
‘He wants to come to Chelsea, he wants to come in and help the club to get back to where we should be. He knows he can score a lot of goals here in the Premier League, and what a what a better place to do that than, you know, his childhood club, Chelsea.’
Osimhen, who scored 76 goals for Napoli across four seasons, joined Galatasaray on loan last week to seemingly put an end to his transfer saga.
Despite Mikel’s claims of Osimhen’s desire to join, the striker has since opened up on his delight at signing for the Turkish giants.
‘When I heard of the interest from Galatasaray, it was a very easy decision for me,’ Osimhen told the club website.
‘I knew how big Galatasaray was and how much like a family it was, and it had incredible fans.’
