Pranav Nair
Manchester United backed to challenge Manchester City for Kalidou Koulibaly
According to Italian publication, Tuttomercatoweb, Manchester United could still be in the fray for Napoli ace Kalidou Koulibaly.
The 29-year-old is one of the best defenders in world football and was on United’s radar before. Although the trail appeared to have gone cold of late, the Red Devils have been backed to make a move for the Senegalese star.
According to journalist Niccolo Seccarini, United and City will duel each other for the player’s signature. The Red Devils are desperate for a dependable centre-back and there are few better than Koulibaly at just that.
Pep Guardiola added Ruben Dias and Nathan Ake to his squad last summer. However, that has done little to diminish his desire to sign Koulibaly.
City saw a €60m bid for the 29-year-old rejected last season. Ceccarini believes such exorbiant prices are a thing of the past, especially given the financial turmoil brought about by the coronavirus.
Whether this means Napoli will lower their asking price remains to be seen. The player, for his part, is now fit after having tested positive for coronavirus earlier this month.
Koulibaly is not the only Serie A defender in our sights. Fiorentina’s Serbian international Nikola Milenkovic is another player we are keeping tabs on.
A promising player, he is more of a project in comparison to Koulibaly. The Senegalese star’s reputation is well-earnt and it remains to be seen if he will end up at United.
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Soon to be 30, Koulibaly is a good fix with quickly diminishing resale value. Napoli are also a notoriously difficult club to deal with and it remains to be seen if we will indeed challenge City for the signings.
