Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis recently re-started the extension talks with Lorenzo Insigne’s agent Vincenzo Pisacane. He had refused to personally meet with the representative for the whole summer over personal disagreements. The chairman upped his offer, but the parties are still distant from an agreement. It remains highly possible that the attacker leaves on a free transfer next summer, La Gazzetta dello Sport reports.
De Laurentiis, which had lowballed the player with his previous proposals, put on the table confirming his current €4.6M salary. However, Insigne’s entourage asked for at least €6M plus a signing bonus. The discussion halted again, and the owner stated he would re-engage only on his own terms. Napoli would like to seal the deal before January in order to avoid outside distractions for the team, which is humming the moment.
The forward recently admitted from the Italy camp that the negotiation was challenging. He would not lack suitors if he really departed in a Bosman move. Inter, which tried to sign him last summer, would be the frontrunners in Italy and could satisfy his personal requests.
Manchester United have taken an interest in putting him under contract as well. Insigne is open to a move abroad, especially to a top Premier League club, the newspaper adds. However, he is still hoping to reconcile with Napoli. He is unlikely to transfer in January, though. The Azzurri set a €30M price tag in the previous window. They are unlikely to lower it despite the peculiar circumstances.