Manchester United keep eyeing Serie A for a new defender, but, as it happened with Cristian Romero, their first bid was rejected. The Red Devils laid their eyes on Kalidou Koulibaly, but Napoli are unwilling to lower their price tag.
The English giants offered €30M for the Senegalese international, but the Partenopei want way more, La Gazzetta dello Sport reports. The Azzurri will not make additions before selling somebody. Despite that, they will not agree to let their linchpins leave at discount prices.
Koulibaly has been available for over a year, but nobody ever made the right offer. Everton are reportedly after the Napoli ace as well, but president Aurelio Di Laurentiis asks for a sizeable sum. The departure of the center-back would significantly lower the payroll, but that has not impacted the posture of the chairman. The same goes for Fabian Ruiz, who is on the radar of few Spanish clubs but will not transfer for cheap.
The stiff stance will not change for Lorenzo Insigne too. Napoli could keep him even on an expiring contract if they did not receive a suitable proposal. The deal of the captain is up in 2022, and the talks have progressed slowly.
Koulibaly is instead tied to the club until 2023; therefore, the Partenopei are not in dire need to sell him this summer. Previous reports suggested they would discuss a new contract at lowered wages if the defender did not depart this summer. The intermediary Fali Ramadani is canvassing the market for buyers, but the bids will have to come close to €50M, Corriere dello Sport informs.