Super Eagles striker says club mocked him with "coconut" reference, reneged on gentleman's agreement, and tried to "send him everywhere" before loan to Galatasaray
Victor Osimhen has opened up about the bitter circumstances surrounding his controversial departure from Napoli, revealing that the Serie A club treated him "like a dog" after a series of humiliations that began with racist-tinged social media posts and culminated in broken promises and forced exile.
In an explosive interview with Gazzetta dello Sport, the 27-year-old Super Eagles striker detailed the events that led to his falling out with the Italian club and his eventual €75 million permanent move in 2025—first loaned to Galatasaray after being frozen out of the squad.
The TikTok Incident
Osimhen traced the beginning of his troubles to late 2023, when Napoli's official TikTok account posted videos mocking him after he missed a penalty in a Serie A match.
"Anyone can miss a penalty, anyone can be mocked for it. Napoli only did it to me, and with certain innuendos, too," Osimhen recounted.
The situation escalated when older videos resurfaced that appeared to carry racist undertones—including one that literally referred to Osimhen's head as a "coconut." The Nigerian striker, who had been instrumental in Napoli's 2023 Scudetto victory, felt targeted and disrespected.
"I was the victim of racist insults, and I made my decision: I wanted to leave," he said.
Broken Promises
According to Osimhen, he had secured what he believed was a binding agreement with club management that would allow him to depart at the end of the season.
"We had a gentleman's agreement that I could leave the following summer, but the other side didn't fully keep their promise," he alleged.
When the club reneged, Osimhen took matters into his own hands. "I deleted photos of me in a Napoli shirt from my Instagram, and they seized the opportunity to turn the fans against me."
'I'm Not a Puppet'
What followed was a period of what Osimhen describes as systematic mistreatment designed to force him out or break his resolve.
"They tried to send me to play everywhere, treating me like a dog. Go here, go there, do this, do that," he said. "I worked so hard to advance my career, I couldn't accept that kind of treatment. I'm not a puppet."
The club ultimately froze Osimhen out completely before the 2024/25 season, failing to register him in its Serie A squad and forcing him to seek playing time elsewhere. A loan move to Galatasaray was arranged, where he rediscovered his form, scoring consistently in both domestic and European competitions.
In 2025, the separation became permanent when Napoli agreed to sell Osimhen for €75 million, ending a relationship that had begun with such promise four years earlier.
The Scudetto Legacy
Osimhen's time at Napoli produced some of the club's greatest moments in decades. His goals were instrumental in securing the 2022-23 Serie A title—the club's first in 33 years. He finished as the league's top scorer that season with 26 goals, cementing his status as one of Europe's most feared strikers.
The bitter end, however, has overshadowed those achievements in the minds of many fans. Osimhen's account of events paints a picture of a club that turned on its own hero, using social media to humiliate him and management to marginalize him.
Broader Implications
The Nigerian striker's allegations add to growing scrutiny of how Italian football handles issues of racism and player treatment. Osimhen is not the first Black player to speak out about discriminatory treatment in Serie A, but his status as a former league champion and top scorer gives his account particular weight.
For Napoli, the interview represents a public relations challenge, forcing the club to confront uncomfortable questions about how it treated a player who delivered its first Scudetto in a generation. For Osimhen, now thriving in Turkey and still in his prime, the interview serves as both catharsis and a warning to future clubs: respect matters as much as contracts.
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