Victor Osimhen says he was pressured into signing for Napoli in 2020 during his father’s death, as Italian prosecutors reopen a probe into alleged false accounting in the €70m deal.
Super Eagles striker Victor Osimhen has alleged that he was pressured into signing for Napoli in 2020 while grieving his father’s death, claiming agents and club officials pushed the transfer without his full consent.
In testimony leaked to Italian newspaper La Repubblica, the 26-year-old told investigators that he was excluded from contract discussions between Lille officials and Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis.
“My previous agent, Jean Gerard, had expressed serious interest from Napoli, but he was only interested in my transfer and not in my father’s health. At that time, I didn’t have the head to think about football,” Osimhen said.
He alleged he was never shown a draft contract despite De Laurentiis insisting otherwise. Instead, he was handed “a piece of paper, a pseudo-agreement with Napoli.” Osimhen said he felt deceived and considered abandoning the move.
The striker eventually cut ties with Gerard and brought in William D’Avila, before signing the deal in Lille in July 2020 alongside Napoli official Maurizio Micheli and other representatives.
Napoli and Lille are now under renewed investigation by prosecutors in Rome for alleged false accounting in the €70m transfer, which included €20m in player exchanges. Documents reportedly show that both clubs may have inflated the valuations of little-known players who never featured for Lille.
Authorities have requested that De Laurentiis and other officials stand trial over the suspected financial irregularities.