Victor Osimhen is defended by his agent despite testing positive after partying with family

‘Don’t consider it as if he went to Ibiza to the disco’: Napoli star Victor Osimhen is defended by his agent despite testing positive for Covid-19 after partying with family in Nigeria over Christmas… as Italian side fine £45m striker for breaking rules

  • Napoli forward Victor Osimhen tested positive for Covid-19 after his trip to Lagos
  • Osimhen broke social distancing rules and partied with his family without a mask
  • The Napoli authorities and manager Gennaro Gattuso were furious and fined him
  • Roberto Calenda said that Osimhen had been going through ‘a difficult period’
  • He admitted Osimhen was in the wrong but wanted people to know the context

Napoli forward Victor Osimhen has been defended by his agent Roberto Calenda following his breach of Covid-19 protocols.

Osimhen tested positive for coronavirus after his trip to Lagos, where he had flouted social distancing rules and partied with friends and family without wearing a mask.

Calenda defended his family’s decision to throw Osimhen a surprise birthday party and insisted that people must know ‘the context’ before judging the situation.

Napoli forward Victor Osimhen (above) tested positive for Covid-19 after his trip to Lagos

Calenda revealed how the 22-year-old had been going through ‘a difficult period in recent months’ after losing his father and that he had been struggling with injury. 

Calenda admitted that the forward had ‘made a mistake’ but asked that his wrongdoing was not compared to that of going to a ‘disco’ in Ibiza.

Osimhen’s agent told Il Mattino:’He should not be accused of a family party. He was naive, but you also need to know the context to get a complete picture of the issue.

Osimhen broke social distancing rules and partied with his family without a mask (above)

Osimhen broke social distancing rules and partied with his family without a mask (above)

A video surfaced on social media showing  a group of at least 20 people dancing and singing

A video surfaced on social media showing  a group of at least 20 people dancing and singing

‘We are talking about a 22-year-old boy who has been through a difficult period in recent months.

‘He was alone for a long time; he lost his father and things got even worse with the injury. He hadn’t seen his family for months and when he got home, they threw him a surprise party for his birthday.

‘It’s OK to judge the mistake, but please don’t consider it as if he went to Ibiza to the disco. Having said that, he made a mistake and apologised to everyone.’

The Napoli authorities and manager Gennaro Gattuso were furious with the striker after videos of the birthday party surfaced on social media.

None of the participants in the video were seen wearing a mask or keeping their distance

None of the participants in the video were seen wearing a mask or keeping their distance

The Napoli authorities and manager Gennaro Gattuso (L) were furious and fined him £45m

The Napoli authorities and manager Gennaro Gattuso (L) were furious and fined him £45m

The video showed a group of at least 20 people – including Osimhen – dancing and singing in close proximity. 

None of the participants in the video were seen wearing a mask or keeping their distance from one another.  

As a result of his rule breaking, Napoli have issued Osimhen with a hefty fine and the forward is set to miss out on the club’s first match of 2021 against Cagliari as he recovers from the virus. 

Osimhen took to Instagram to share his apology for his actions, writing: ‘I am so sorry for what happened, I was wrong to go to Nigeria in this moment, even if I have many loved ones over there, including my brothers.

‘I was wrong to take part in the party I didn’t understand the severity of what I was doing. I apologise to the club, the coach, the team and the fans.’

The forward will miss the club's first match of 2021 against Cagliari to recover from the virus

The forward will miss the club’s first match of 2021 against Cagliari to recover from the virus

It is likely that Osimhen will also miss Napoli’s league games against Udinese and Spezia. As well as their Italian Cup tie against Empoli. 

Osimhen has already missed a significant number of games this season, having been out of action since suffering a shoulder injury while on international duty with Nigeria.

His injury came against Sierra Leone during the 2022 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers in November.

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