Idman.biz
Victor Osimhen, 27, who plays for Turkish club Galatasaray, has said that the attitude towards him changed at Napoli and that the club "treated him like a dog".
Idman.Biz reports that although the Nigerian striker made a great contribution to the championship in Serie A in 2023, the scandalous video that went viral on social networks in September of that year became the breaking point of the relationship. A post on Napoli's official TikTok account about Osimhen's missed penalty was widely criticized, and the footballer considered it racist and humiliating.
Osimhen told Gazzetta dello Sport that he did not want to stay at the club after the incident. According to him, Juventus were interested in adding him to the squad and former sporting director Ciuntoli contacted him for a transfer. However, the transfer did not take place because he knew that Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentis did not want to let him go.
The striker emphasized that the relationship changed especially after the video spread on social media.
Osimhen noted that missing a penalty can happen to any football player, but it was unacceptable for the club to openly mock him. He stated that he was subjected to racist insinuations and then decided to leave. The footballer also said that he deleted photos with the Napoli uniform from his Instagram account, and then some people incited the fans against him.
He also emphasized that the club management did not apologize publicly. He stated that only Edoardo De Laurentis contacted him.
Although Osimhen extended his contract in December 2023, he explained that this was only to protect the transfer value. According to him, there was a "gentleman's agreement" to leave next summer, but this commitment was not fully fulfilled.
"They were trying to send me here and there, they were treating me like a dog. I worked hard to build my career and I couldn't accept such an attitude. I'm not a puppet," said Osimhen.
Although head coach Antonio Conte tried to keep him in the team, the football player did not change his decision. Osimhen noted that Conte openly said that he wanted him to stay, but he did not want to stay in an environment where he was not happy.
Thus, the relationship between Osimhen, who scored 31 goals in all tournaments in the 2022/23 season and became the top scorer of Serie A, and Napoli ended scandalously.
