Chelsea have now been formally “offered” Victor Osimhen as part of a swap deal for Romelu Lukaku, according to The Times.

The newspaper claims that Napoli’s sporting director Giovanni Manna has held “talks in London” with the Blues.

During discussions about Lukaku, it is believed that Osimhen’s name was mentioned, but there is still a sizeable gap between the two parties.

Napoli want £90m for Osimhen while they are only willing to pay around €30m (£25.6m) for Lukaku, meaning Chelsea would need to stump up around £64m in cash.

The Times also report that the London club are not happy about Napoli’s valuation of Lukaku, with it being felt that the Serie A side should be paying closer to £40m.

It’s a complicated transfer for Chelsea

It is not only the transfer fee involved that makes any deal difficult to complete. Osimhen’s salary demands are also excessive.

After signing a new contract with Napoli, the Nigerian international is earning €246,000 a week (which is around £211,000). The forward will not accept a pay cut of any kind and, if he does move on a permanent basis, he may even demand a wage rise.

Some have argued that Chelsea could soak up the cost as they will be removing Lukaku’s salary if they sell him to Napoli, but there are other expenses to consider (including agent fees and signing bonuses).

Two forwards could be signed before the window closes

It has been reported that the club are hoping to recruit Atletico Madrid’s Joao Felix and another striker ahead of the August 30th deadline.

Felix is expected to cost at least €50m (£43m), and the Portuguese international is said to be keen on a return to Stamford Bridge, having spent the second half of the 2022/23 season on loan there.

Find out who is in Chelsea’s first-team squad for the 2024/2025 season here