Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis has expressed regret over the departures of top stars Victor Osimhen and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia from the club.

Osimhen and Kvaratskhelia were pivotal to Napoli's Italian Serie A title win in the 2022/23 season, the club's first league title since the 1989/90 season.

Both players attracted interest from other European clubs that summer, but the Serie A champions kept their assets even with the departure of Luciano Spalletti.

The 2023/24 season was underwhelming as the club finished 10th after having three managers and completely missed out on European football.

Osimhen attempted to force his way out in the summer of 2025, but after prolonged negotiations over a permanent exit, he joined Galatasaray on a season-long loan.

Galatasaray signed him permanently from Napoli for €75 million after impressing during the loan period, beating competition from Saudi club Al-Hilal.

Kvaratskhelia waited until the winter window of 2025 before securing a move to Paris Saint-Germain for €75 million, winning the UEFA Champions League in his first season.

Even though the players were sold for a combined €150 million, Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis believes he could have made much more from both.

He admitted that he was forced to sell the Georgian mid-season because his agent, Mamuka Jugeli, threatened to use Article 17, which would put him at great loss.

“I could have sold him [Kvaratskhelia] at that moment. PSG had offered over 200m for the Kvara and Osimhen package,” he told Corriere della Serra as quoted by Di Marzio.

“However, I had promised Conte I would keep him, and I didn’t feel like going back on my word. With those funds, the idea was to buy Gyokeres.”

The departure of both players within six months of each other nearly forced Antonio Conte out of the club despite winning the Serie A title last season. The Italian stayed on with an improved salary and promise that the club would invest to improve his squad, a pact which is being fulfilled, particularly with the signing of Kevin De Bruyne.

What is Article 17?

According to FIFPRO, Article 17, or the Diarra rule, is a law which allows a player to unilaterally terminate his contract if he feels the club is unjustly altering the progress of his career.

The player is then obliged to pay a fixed compensation to the club, which is the value of his remaining contract, a fee which is mostly lower than the supposed transfer fee.