Manchester City are preparing an offer for Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly, according to Italian journalist Gianluca Di Marzio.
The intentions of the 29-year-old regarding his future this summer haven’t been easy to read. There were links suggesting he could leave, and Manchester City have been mentioned very often as a potential destination given that their failure to replace Vincent Kompany last summer and the injury suffered by Aymeric Laporte early last season are seen as crucial reasons for the way they were left behind by rivals Liverpool in the Premier League title race.
But Koulibaly himself always maintained that he and his family were very happy in Naples and it is said that he played an important role in Napoli’s acquisition of forward Victor Osimhen from Lille OSC, telling the 21-year-old Nigerian to come and join him at the Serie A club.
Koulibaly is certainly one of the best centre-backs in the game right now, but given that he’ll be entering his thirties next year, his stock isn’t likely to rise any further, and if Napoli intend to make money out of selling him, now is probably the right time to do so.
Nonetheless, there was apparently some dispute over the potential price between two clubs, but now it seems City are willing to match Napoli’s asking price, reportedly set at €75 million.
The Premier League club have already signed Nathan Ake from Bournemouth to strengthen their defensive ranks and the depth of that department already looks better, but the likes of Nicolas Otamendi and John Stones have been named in terms of possible departures before this window is out.
One thing seems certain – with Koulibaly, Pep Guardiola’s team will have a much better chance of regaining the league title, as well as winning the Champions League in 2020/21.
