Chelsea are set to make Victor Osimhen their primary target when they enter the market for a striker, with Italian sources expecting the Napoli forward to be open to a move to Stamford Bridge.

Mauricio Pochettino wants to add a centre-forward to his squad in future windows, with Osimhen at the top of his list after his three seasons in Serie A where he has helped Napoli win the Scudetto.

The Nigeria international, 24, is expected to have an asking price of more than £100 million and could break the Premier League record of £106.8 million paid by Chelsea for Enzo Fernandez, which could make a January deal difficult but it is a position Pochettino wants to fill long-term.

Chelsea have a link with Osimhen through Kalidou Koulibaly, who left the club in the summer for Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia but has friends at the club. He is close to Osimhen, who was a team-mate at Napoli when the striker arrived from Lille in 2020.

Difficult relationship with Napoli

Osimhen’s relationship with Napoli has been tested this season, with his representatives threatening legal action over a video posted on an official club TikTok account that mocked their own player. According to Italian sources, Chelsea would be a club the player would consider should he move away from Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.

His deal taking him to Napoli three years ago was widely reported to be worth around €70 million to Lille but also saw youth players move in the opposite direction. With one full season left on his contract at Napoli, he would still earn them a huge profit on a player who was also at Wolfsburg in Germany and Belgian club Charleroi before moving to France. 

Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis spoke last month about the relationship between the player and club insisting that it is “entirely out of place” that there is tension between the two parties. They have changed managers this season, with Walter Mazzarri, the former Watford head coach, taking charge after the departure of Rudi Garcia. Napoli defeated Atalanta 2-1 this weekend with Osimhen coming off the bench for his first appearance in six weeks following a hamstring problem. 

Chelsea signed Nicolas Jackson, 22, from Villarreal in the summer and the Senegal striker has scored seven goals this season so far. Pochettino also has Christopher Nkunku returning from injury who can play centrally, even if he is more of a deep-lying forward.

Armando Broja, 22, also adds to his striker options but there is still an appetite to have a No 9 added to the squad. Osimhen has six goals in 11 appearances in this campaign after ending Napoli’s wait for the title last season.