John Obi Mikel has revealed that Victor Osimhen was ‘disappointed’ at the collapse of a deadline day transfer to Chelsea.
Chelsea held talks with Napoli over a deal to sign the forward on deadline day but were unable to reach an agreement with all parties.
The West Londoners proposed a loan deal with a mandatory purchase option, though failed to find an agreement with the player on personal terms.
Osimhen instead joined Galatasaray on a straight loan deal after the collapse of the move to the Premier League, with his move to the Turkish champions considering a break clause should certain clubs approach in January.
Former Chelsea midfielder Mikel, who was involved in negotiations for Osimhen’s move to the Blues, has opened up on how close a deal was to completion and the player’s disappointment to miss out on the move.
“Everyone knows I was involved in the deal,” he told The Obi One Podcast. “I was involved in trying to get Victor Osimhen to the club. A lot happened. I hear a lot of people saying this and saying that about Victor and how greedy he is, ‘take a paycut and come to Chelsea’, stuff like that…
“I just want to categorically state here that – I know the kid, I know the boy since the very first day he joined the national team. My relationship with him has been very, very good. Since then, we have kept in contact. I just want to say that is absolutely not true. Victor is not a greedy guy, he just wants to get what he deserves, and that’s not a problem.”
Reports on Osimhen salary demands dubbed bulls**t
Mikel dismissed suggestions Osimhen was asking for an unreasonable salary, amid reports the player requested £500,000-a-week to join Chelsea.
“No, he wasn’t asking for that, that’s bulls**t. I know what happened, I was there in the midst of everything. I can tell everybody that is definitely not true.
“We were very, very close, I’ll put it that way. We were hours away from getting this deal done, but there were just slight issues, little problems that we just couldn’t get over the line. Of course, then the medical couldn’t be done, it was too late.
“But I know exactly where we stopped. I know exactly where we are with the deal. If, eventually in January we pick it up again, I know exactly where we have to start from. I was the guy right in the middle of everything. For a couple of days, I didn’t sleep.
“I know what Victor wanted, I know what the club offered. I know where we got to. We finally got to a compromise. Both sides had to compromise and we got to a compromise. Some little things here and there – paperwork, medicals and a few issues we couldn’t get over the line. We didn’t have much time.
“Both sides played their parts in terms of getting the deal done. I commend Chelsea for that, because I could see the ambition of where they want to take the club, and on Victor’s side, how much he wanted to come to the club. He was disappointed it didn’t happen.”
