Manchester United have finally made a formal approach to sign defender Kalidou Koulibaly from Napoli during this summer’s transfer window.
The Red Devils managed a disappointing sixth-placed finish in the league last term and most of the blame could be put on the backline, which leaked more than 50 goals for the first time in the Premier League era.
Owing to this, the club have been backed to pursue a central defender with a world-class pedigree this summer and Corriere dello Sport via The Mail claims that Koulibaly is apparently the leading target.
The same outlet claims that the club have placed a £84m bid on the table for the Senegal international but the sum remains below Napoli’s £89m valuation for the moment.
Koulibaly has been heavily linked with a Premier League move in the past few seasons and over the past year, United have been the main club, who have been associated with his services.
The Senegalese certainly provides a commanding presence in the backline alongside his strong passing and tackling attributes, but the main aspect may remain whether they can convince Napoli into a sale.
Napoli president Aurelio de Laurentiis has the tendency to prolong negotiations until the exact valuation is met and in such a situation, it will be interesting to see whether United are prepared to up their bid.
Aside from Koulibaly, United have been heavily linked with Ajax’s Matthijs de Ligt but the deal seems to be getting improbable by the day amid strong interest from Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain.
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