Arsenal have been brought back into the equation for Napoli striker Victor Osimhen and the latest developments indicate the Serie A side are interested in a Gunners player in return.
Centre-forward is probably the position that would most benefit from an upgrade in the Arsenal squad after Gabriel Jesus and Eddie Nketiah only scored eight and six goals respectively in the 2023-24 season.
There are plenty of strikers for Arsenal to consider as transfer targets, but one of the biggest statements they could make would be winning the race for Napoli frontman Osimhen.
TEAMtalk has regularly reported that Chelsea would be the Nigeria international’s preferred destination, but our latest information was that the Blues would have to sell some players to comply with Financial Fair Play first.
Subsequently, it has been claimed that Arsenal could reignite their interest in Osimhen, who scored 17 goals – more than Jesus and Nketiah put together – despite Napoli’s standards dropping off in their failed Serie A title defence.
Whether Arsenal manage to secure Osimhen or not, there could be another player transferring between the Gunners and Napoli this summer, in the opposite direction.
According to Italian paper Il Corriere Dello Sport, Napoli are interested in signing Emile Smith Rowe, who has fallen out of favour under Mikel Arteta.
Smith Rowe has played abroad before, enduring a loan spell in Germany with RB Leipzig in 2019, but is said to have various opportunities to remain in the Premier League. Newcastle have been identified as possible suitors by TEAMtalk sources, for example.
Arsenal academy graduate could head to Serie A
If he decides to test himself overseas again, though, a move to Napoli could take shape. It would see him working under former Chelsea and Tottenham boss Antonio Conte, who is ready to take the reins in Naples.
In theory, Arsenal could include Smith Rowe as a counterpart in a player-plus-cash bid for Osimhen, who is otherwise valued in the region of €120m-130m.
Back in March, TEAMtalk learned that Arsenal were – somewhat ambitiously – aiming to earn up to £45m from a sale of Smith Rowe, which would to around €52m. But they may struggle to convince Napoli that is how much he would be worth in the operation.
The Hale End graduate is still under contract in north London until 2026, but after only starting three Premier League matches in 2023-24 (and none in 2022-23) he may be wondering if he will simply stagnate at Arsenal.
Perhaps he could find a new lease of life in a completely different environment such as Serie A, although there would be no Champions League, Europa League or Conference League involvement on offer with Napoli after they finished 10th in the table.
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