Napoli under investigation for Osimhen transfer, says report

Reports out of Italy claim Napoli is under investigation for its purchase of Victor Osimhen from Lille. The transfer occurred in 2020 in a deal worth around $82 million in total. However, there are suggestions of financial issues regarding part of the deal.

La Repubblica is reporting that the Italian club agreed to pay about $59 million of the aforementioned fee in cash. French side Lille would then receive the remaining $23 million in valuation of four players. Claudio Monzi, Luigi Liguori, Ciro Palmieri and Orestis Karnezis were the quartet set to transfer to Lille. Nevertheless, there are suggestions that the little-known players’ combined fees were overvalued to inflate capital gains.

Quartet never actually played for Lille

Monzi actually never even went to Lille. The club loaned him out immediately. According to Transfermarkt, Liguori had a valuation of about $88,000 but he made the move to Lille for $4.7 million. Palmieri had a similar valuation by the website and transferred for over $8 million. Also, Karnezis picked up an overvaluation. He retired from the sport in 2022.

None of the four players actually played a match for Lille.

It was reported earlier in the year that Italian prosecutors would investigate the 2020 transfers. The news came soon after fellow Serie A club Juventus faced a deduction of 15 league points for financial irregularities in the team’s books. Now, the Guardia di Finanza are reportedly gathering official documents on the Osimhen transfer.

Osimhen now one of top players in the world at Napoli

Osimhen exceeded expectations in Italy. The center forward has 53 goals in 91 total matches with the Italian team. This season in particular has been the Nigeria international’s breakout campaign. He has managed to rack up 29 combined goals and assists in as many matches this season.

With help from their star striker, Napoli is cruising in the Serie A during the current campaign. They are currently leading the Italian top flight by 16 points over Lazio. Napoli will however, have to face fellow Serie A club AC Milan in the Champions League quarterfinal without Osimhen. The star misses out due to a recent injury.

PHOTO: IMAGO / Sportimage