Sports
Napoli Slap £150m Price Tag On Osimhen – Report

Napoli will demand £150million for their star striker Victor Osimhen this summer, according to reports, with Manchester United and Chelsea chasing his signature.
Osimhen is one of the most sought-after strikers in Europe and has turned heads with his clinical displays that have seen him net 25 goals for the Naples outfit and helped them go 19 points clear at the top of Serie A.
A report credited to Il Mattino by Mail Online says Napoli are braced for a flood of offers for the 24-year-old at the end of the season after his dazzling campaign – and have geared up for the interest by slapping a huge price tag on the Nigerian.
READ ALSO: Osimhen Nominated For Serie A Player Of The Month Award
The Italian outfit are under no pressure to sell their prized asset – who is under contract until 2025 – with president Aurelio De Laurentiis not interested in sitting down with any club who offers a penny short of the £150m asking price.
It added that Osimhen would be interested in joining United, who had made signing a new striker a priority this summer – but club officials may be put off by the eye-water price Napoli were after.
Erik ten Hag is desperate for more firepower to put his team in touching distance of the likes of Arsenal and Man City – who are the only two sides in the Premier League title race this season.
READ ALSO: UCL: Chelsea Legend Begs Osimhen To Come EPL
United are also interested in Harry Kane – but they are already warned that he will set them back £100m this summer, with the Tottenham forward’s contract expiring in 2024.
The Times claimed Spurs will also reject any attempt for United to pay the sum for Kane in instalments as they look to avoid selling to a domestic rival and convince him to sign a new deal – despite the team’s troubling season.
However, he would still remain a cheaper option than Osimhen, with United also keen on RB Salzburg’s Benjamin Sesko. The Slovenian star has already agreed a move to Leipzig, but United could still hijack the deal.
READ ALSO: Fans Queue To Buy Osimhen Mask As Striker Equals Higuain Record
Mail Online gathered that Chelsea had also been strongly linked with Osimhen. The Blues have spent a whopping £600m on new players under new owner Todd Boehly this season but are still in need of a reliable goalscorer – with Joao Felix and Kai Havertz struggling to provide a regular supply of goals.
Italian outlet Calciomercato recently reported that the Blues have identified Osimhen as having ‘the right profile’ for the club – and that Boehly was planning to offer them cash plus Christian Pulisic in return.
Speaking this month, Osimhen confirmed he would sit down with his agents to discuss his future at the end of the season.
Sports
WCQ: Haaland Scores Hat-trick As Norway Thrash Israel 5-0
Erling Haaland scored a hat-trick to pass 50 international goals in record time as Norway cruised to a 5-0 thrashing of Israel on Saturday, edging closer to qualifying for a first World Cup since 1998.
Norway, who have not played at a major tournament since Euro 2000, now lead Group I with nine points more than second-placed Italy, who have two games in hand and play in Estonia later Saturday.
The Scandinavians will secure a place at next year’s finals in the United States, Canada, and Mexico with a win over the Estonians on Tuesday if Italy fails to defeat either Estonia or Israel in their next two matches.
Manchester City striker Haaland is the leading scorer in European qualifying with 12 goals so far.
READ ALSO:EPL: Haaland Finishes Top Goal Scorer [See list]
He also became the fastest player in men’s international football to reach 50 goals for his country and now boasts 51 goals for Norway in just 46 games.
England captain Harry Kane held the previous record, bringing up his half-century in 71 appearances.
Ahead of kick-off, hundreds of people attended a pro-Palestinian demonstration, chanting “Free Palestine” to protest against Israel’s “genocide” in Gaza, AFP journalists reported.
The head of the Norwegian football association, Lise Klaveness, recently said she was pushing “for Israel to be sanctioned”.
READ ALSO:EPL: Haaland Scores Four In Man City Rout Of Wolves
In early action, Haaland surprised the Norwegian fans in the Ullevaal Stadium when his penalty was saved by Israeli goalkeeper Daniel Peretz.
The spot-kick was ordered to be retaken for encroachment inside the area and Haaland struck his second effort in the opposite direction, only for it to be parried away again by Peretz.
But Norway did forge ahead in the 18th minute through an Anan Khalaili own goal, before Haaland raced clear to score in a ninth successive international appearance.
READ ALSO:Five-goal Haaland Crushes Luton As Man City Reach FA Cup Quarter-finals
The hosts grabbed their third just seconds after Israel kicked off again in the 28th minute, as Peretz kicked the ball off Idan Nachmias, who was under pressure from Haaland, and into the net for another own goal.
Nachmias also had to go off injured after colliding with the post.
Haaland added his second in the 63rd minute, powering home a header from Antonio Nusa’s cross, before nodding in to complete his hat-trick with 18 minutes left.
Elsewhere, Hungary beat Armenia 2-0 in Group F, meaning Portugal could qualify with back-to-back wins over the Republic of Ireland, who they were facing at home later Saturday, and then Hungary on Tuesday.
Sports
Just Like Football Clubs, Let’s Sign Foreign President To Fix Nigeria – Actor Okele [VIDEO]
Popular Nigerian actor, Tunde Usman, professionally known as Okele, has proposed ‘signing’ of foreign Presidents to fix the country.
The actor made the suggestion while reacting to Nigeria’s current economic hardship.
Reacting to the increase in price of cooking gas across the nation, Okele in a now trending video shared on his Instagram page proposed a football method of removing a non performing coaches to address Nigeria’s challenges.
Speaking in Yoruba, the actor argued that adoption of the football method might solve constant disappointment with elected leaders.
READ ALSO:Nollywood Actress, Mercy Aigbe, Loses Mother
“Greetings to all Nigerians home and abroad. May God help us soften this hardship. I just thought of something about gas, fuel and the way things are expensive in Nigeria.
“If you are a lover of football you would know that every club has a coach, assistant coach, and those that train the keepers. So, instead of campaigning for different political parties with some looting our money, why can’t Nigeria look around the world and sign any ex-president that has proven himself in another country to fix Nigeria.
“Even many football nations signed coaches from different countries. Maybe we should adopt the signing of the President method to end different political parties campaigns. Let’s come together and sign our President the same way we signed the coach and we can sack the non performing President and sign a new one.”
Sports
FIFA U-20 World Cup: Argentina Crush Nigeria 4-0
Argentina produced a commanding performance to beat Nigeria’s Flying Eagles 4-0 in a knockout-stage match at the U-20 World Cup on Wednesday.
Alejo Sarco opened the scoring after just two minutes, tapping in from a Dylan Gorosito cross.
Maher Carrizo doubled the lead with a superb left-footed free-kick on 23 minutes and added a second shortly after the interval (53′) to make it 3-0.
Mateo Silvetti capped the scoring with a low finish on 66 minutes, finishing off a move created by Gianluca Prestianni.
The Flying Eagles huffed and puffed but rarely threatened the match rhythm. Daniel Daga saw a close-range effort saved before half-time, and Kparobo Arierhi rattled the post in stoppage time of the first half.
READ ALSO:Nigeria Vs Lesotho: What Super Eagles Must Do To Qualify For 2026 World Cup
But none of their attacks could find a way past Argentina’s goalkeeper Santino Barbi or break down a disciplined defensive unit.
Meanwhile, Ebenezer Harcourt produced several important saves to limit the damage early on.
Tactical changes came early in the second half as Nigeria’s coach shuffled his pack, introducing Auwal Ibrahim, Abduljelil Kamaldeen, Emmanuel Ekele and Charles Agada in a bid to spark a revival, but Argentina’s control of the midfield and clinical finishing rendered the substitutions ineffective.
Details later…
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