Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis has insisted defender Kalidou Koulibaly will not be sold in January, but concedes the club may eventually have to let him go.
Koulibaly has been in fantastic form for Napoli this season, helping the club to second in Serie A so far.
Will Koulibaly be leaving Napoli? Five key things to know…
- Koulibaly signed for Napoli from Genk in 2o14 and has made 174 appearances for the club to date.
- Has garnered a reputation as one of the finest centre-backs in Europe in recent years.
- Helped Napoli to three successive top-three finishes in Serie A.
- Koulibaly’s form has led to widespread links with a move to Manchester United, who have conceded the fifth-most goals (29) in the Premier League.
- Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis hasn’t ruled out a transfer but says it ‘won’t be in January’.
The Partenopei crashed out of the Champions League at the group stage, however, losing 1-0 to Liverpool on matchday six to seal a third-place finish in group C.
And rumours are now circulating that Manchester United have made Koulibaly their number one transfer target; De Laurentiis has confirmed the interest but says Napoli ‘won’t sell in January’.
“We won’t sell Koulibaly in January,” the 69-year-old told Corriere del Mezzogiorno (via Football Italia).
“But the time will come where we can’t refuse other indecent offers. We always invest, but with criteria.”
De Laurentiis also suggested Napoli are one of the only financially stable clubs in Italian football, adding: “In Italy, there are two or three clubs with balanced books, and I’m the only one who doesn’t have any bank debt.”
Why are Man United so desperate to land Koulibaly?
Manchester United sacked manager Jose Mourinho on Tuesday morning with the club languishing in sixth place in the Premier League, 19 points behind leaders Liverpool.
Mourinho’s final game in charge was a 3-1 defeat at Anfield in which his side allowed the Reds to have 36 shots at David de Gea’s goal; the scoreline also means United have conceded 29 Premier League goals so far this season, the fifth-worst in the division.
The Portuguese constantly chopped and changed between the likes of Chris Smalling, Phil Jones, Eric Bailly, Victor Lindelof and Marcos Rojo at centre-back, and it is clear that the Red Devils desperately lack a leader at the heart of their defence.
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