Sports
Gala complete €75m Osimhen payment to Napoli
Galatasaray have drawn a line under their financial obligations to Napoli after completing payment of the full €75m transfer fee for Super Eagles captain Victor Osimhen, settling the final instalment of €17.5m and bringing a protracted payment plan to its conclusion, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.
The deal, which was structured across multiple instalments when it was agreed in July 2025, saw Galatasaray pay an initial €40m upfront before the remainder was divided into two further tranches of €17.5m each, with the final payment due by the end of 2026.
According to Turkish journalist Ali Naci Küçük, the completion of the last instalment ahead of schedule puts the Turkish club in a stronger negotiating position heading into the summer transfer window, having cleared all liabilities linked to the signing.
Osimhen’s move to Galatasaray was the most expensive incoming transfer in Turkish football history, dwarfing Fenerbahce’s €20m signing of Youssef En-Nesyri from Sevilla.
The deal also included a 10 per cent clause giving Napoli a share of any future profit from Osimhen’s next transfer, as well as an anti-Italy clause that forces Galatasaray to pay double the total fee if the striker joins a Serie A club before 2027 — a condition inserted by Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis to prevent the Nigerian from resurfacing with a domestic rival.
The Osimhen-Napoli relationship unravelled after the 2022/23 season, during which the striker played a central role in ending the Italian club’s 33-year wait for the Serie A title, finishing as the league’s top scorer with 26 goals.
Despite signing a lucrative contract extension in December 2023 that made him the highest-paid player in Napoli’s history, a turbulent 2023/24 campaign and Napoli’s rejection of a reported $170m offer from Al Ahli widened the rift. He subsequently joined Galatasaray on loan for the 2024/25 season, where he scored 37 goals and provided eight assists across all competitions — the most prolific single-season return in the Istanbul club’s recent history.
Those numbers convinced Galatasaray to pursue a permanent deal, and despite weeks of squabbling over payment structure and demands for banking guarantees from Napoli, the transfer was finalised in July 2025. Osimhen signed a four-year contract earning a reported €15m net per season in guaranteed salary, plus bonuses and image rights payments.
In his first permanent season, the 27-year-old scored 22 goals and contributed eight assists in 33 appearances across all competitions, helping Galatasaray clinch a fourth consecutive Süper Lig title and reach the UEFA Champions League round of 16.
Despite completing the payment, Galatasaray’s hold on Osimhen remains under scrutiny. Real Madrid, Chelsea, Arsenal and Bayern Munich have all been linked with the striker in recent months. (Punch)
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