Joshua Zirkzee of Manchester United gestures during the warm up prior to the Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Manchester United FC at Anfield on January 05, 2025 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images)
This will force Napoli to look on the market for a new centre forward, and Corriere dello Sport already reported in the morning that Zirkzee was among the Partenopei candidates alongside Crystal Palace’s Jean-Philippe Mateta, Roma’s Artem Dovbyk and Lecce’s Nikola Krstovic.
CASTEL DI SANGRO, ITALY – AUGUST 14: Romelu Lukaku of Napoli lies on the pitch after being injured during the pre-season friendly match between Napoli and Olympiacos at Stadio Teofilo Patini on August 14, 2025 in Castel di Sangro, Italy. (Photo by Giuseppe Bellini/Getty Images)
The latest reports, including those of transfer experts Niccolò Ceccarini and Orazio Accomando, however, claim that Zirkzee has emerged as Conte’s favourite option to replace Lukaku.
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 30: Joshua Zirkzee of Manchester United is challenged by Will Alves of Leicester City during the Carabao Cup Fourth Round match between Manchester United and Leicester City at Old Trafford on October 30, 2024 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Nathan Stirk/Getty Images)
The Dutch forward has just started his second season at Old Trafford, having completed a permanent transfer from Bologna in the summer of 2024.
Read the full article here