Official: Napoli signs Lukaku as Osimhen makes his decision

Belgium striker Romelu Lukaku has completed his long-awaited transfer from Chelsea to  Serie A side Napoli. 

Lukaku’s future has been up in the air all summer, with Napoli and Chelsea failing to reach an agreement over the sale of the former Manchester United striker. 

However, both sides have now reached an agreement, with Lukaku joining the Serie A giants for an initial fee of £25m and £12m in potential add-ons on a three-year deal. 

This deal effectively puts an end to Lukaku’s torrid time at Stamford Bridge. Lukaku, who once had a previous spell with Chelsea early in his career, rejoined the club from Inter Milan in 2021 for a then club-record fee of £97.5m. 

However, the move turned out to be a disaster as Lukaku rejoined Inter Milan on loan the following season. 

Following his loan spell at Inter Milan, Lukaku returned to Chelsea but left again on loan to join AS Roma last season. 

Although he had a successful spell at Roma, Chelsea were only interested in selling him permanently this summer. 

Napoli were the only club in for the Belgian international all summer after the Naples club appointed Antonio Conte, who managed Lukaku at Inter Milan. 

The deal now sees both parties reunite at the club with the aim of making Napoli title challengers again. 

Meanwhile, Lukaku’s arrival in Naples effectively ended Victor Osimhen’s time with the Neapolitans, four years after joining the club. 

Like Lukaku, Osimhen’s future at Napoli has been up in the air all summer, with the Nigerian expected to leave the club. 

Although nothing is official yet, Osimhen has decided to leave Napoli before the transfer window shuts this weekend. 

The Nigerian international has been linked with a move to Chelsea and Al-Ahli, but he is yet to decide between the two clubs. 

Al-Ahli officials are already in Naples and are ready to offer him between £26-32m a year in wages. 

However, Chelsea are also in the mix, although the Blues are not willing to match Al-Ahli’s offer and are only interested in signing him on loan with an obligation to buy. 

It remains to be seen what Osimehn decides to do, but the Nigerian striker will leave Napoli this weekend following Lukaku’s arrival.