AMID a public spat with his Serie A club, Napoli, Nigerian striker, Victor Osimhen has deleted all photos and videos featuring the club’s shirt on his Instagram account.
This is coming after a contentious ‘mockery’ video was posted by Napoli’s verified TikTok handle, which openly mocked Osimhen for missing a penalty against Bologna.
The video featured a high-pitched voice in the background shouting, “gimme penalty please.” A subsequent video drew comparisons between Osimhen and a coconut.
Osimhen has netted three times in six appearance in the opening weeks of the season for misfiring Italian champions Napoli.
The 24-year-old has become an icon in Naples after scoring 31 times in all competitions last season as Napoli won their first league title since 1990.
Osimhen, who was a target for Chelsea and Manchester United in the summer, is in the process of negotiating a contract extension with Napoli, with his current deal expiring in June 2025.
He was signed by Napoli from Lille for an initial 70 million euros just over three years ago, a transfer which is being investigated by Italian authorities.
Victor Osimhen’s agent threatened legal action against Napoli after the video published on the club’s official social media mocking him for missing a penalty in the weekend’s goalless draw at Bologna.
“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,” Calenda said on Twitter, now called X, late on Tuesday evening.
“(It is) 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.
“We reserve the right to take legal action and any useful initiative to protect Victor.”
On Tuesday Italian media reported that Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis is among those being investigated by prosecutors in Rome for allegedly falsely inflating the value of the transfer with four players sold to Lille as part of the deal.
Napoli are seventh in Serie A, seven points behind league leaders Inter Milan after winning just two of their opening five domestic matches.