By Samuel A. September 29, 2023
Napoli striker Victor Osimhen have turned against each other over the case of a TikTok video posted by the club’s official page. The Nigerian international is currently reserving “the right to take legal action” against the club for the video which was seemingly mocking the player. The odd video comes after Osimhen helped the Italian team secure their first Scudetto, in about thirty years.
Osimhen, alongside Georgian sensation, Kvicha Kvaratskhelia bolstered Napoli’s squad last season, with the striker bagging 26 goals and 4 assists in 32 Serie A games. The striker, despite bagging 30 goal contributions last season, somehow missed out on the Player of the season award, as Kvara clinched the award with 22 goal contributions in 34 games. Speculations on how the Italian Football Federation were biased to not give Osimhen the award rose, as some even went ahead to term the federation racist.
The strange TikTok post featured a clip of the striker’s penalty miss from their match against Bologna on Sunday, with an odd, sped up voice dubbed over the top. The video comes after there appeared to be tension between Osimhen and Napoli manager Rudi Garcia during the game. The 24 year old was seen berating Garcia as he was substituted off with four minutes remaining of the goalless draw.
Garcia however told DAZN following the 4-1 win over Udinese on Wednesday: “No one wanted to cause harm, neither with the video nor Victor on social media. They are also instinctive reactions, you can understand. On social media he will do what he wants, but I can assure you that he loves the shirt.”
The bizarre social media scrap comes after Osimhen, who reportedly captured the interest of Manchester United and Chelsea this summer, did not sign a new contract with the Italian team.
The Nigerian expects an apology from the Italian champions with the player and his management wanting the club to firmly distance themselves from the social media post.
Osimhen’s agent Roberto Calenda issued a statement on Tuesday night about the incident. He wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter: “What happened today on Napoli’s official profile on the TikTok platform is not acceptable. A video mocking Victor was first made public and then, but now belatedly, deleted. A serious fact that causes very serious damage to the player and adds to the treatment that the boy is suffering in the last period between media trials and fake news.”
Calenda added: “We reserve the right to take legal action and any useful initiative to protect Victor”.
A few hours after Calenda’s comments, Osimhen removed almost all Napoli related photos from his Instagram, including last season’s Scudetto celebrations.
Osimhen also stopped following Napoli on Instagram before re-following them much later that day. Osimhen started up front for Napoli in their Serie A home game against Udinese on Wednesday evening and scored in a 4-1 win, but refused to celebrate after a smart finish in the 39th minute. The striker’s current deal runs out in 2025.
