Pep Guardiola has already attained Ferran Torres and Nathan Ake this summer.
Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly wants to join Manchester City at the earliest. The Senegal international, having reached an agreement with the Sky Blues on personal terms, is understood to be irritated at the tedious rounds of dialogues between the involved factions.
Koulibaly is considered as one of the best centre backs in Europe and has garnered interest from a host of heavyweights, namely Manchester City, Liverpool, Paris Saint-Germain, and Manchester United. Unfortunately, the transfer away from Naples never materialised as no club decided to match the €100m valuation set by the Italian club.
After repeated attempts from Man United last summer, cross-town rivals Man City are trying their best to sign Koulibaly, having missed out on Harry Maguire. Manager Pep Guardiola is after a statement signing for his defence to fill the gap left by Vincent Kompany.
If Lionel Messi ends up joining @ManCity then this kid should get the assist for it 😂👏 pic.twitter.com/7cit7Jc5PS
— 433 (@433) August 31, 2020
Irrespective of their concrete interest, the Cityzens are finding it hard to reach consensus with their Serie A counterparts. They are still demanding around €90m, with them needing finances to balance their accounts amid heavy spending in the market, as well as the after-effects of the pandemic.
Napoli chairman, Aurelio De Laurentiis, has softened his stance on Kalidou Koulibaly’s asking price which is now believed to be dangling somewhere in between €70m-€80m. Thus far, Man City bosses are understood to have offered €63m with €7m in add-ons but the Azzurri want a higher fee upfront.
City chiefs have also explored the possibility of offering Eric Garcia as a part of the deal to reduce financial commitments. The proposal is yet to be acknowledged by the Napoli bosses, as they lose out on Koulibaly’s direct replacement, Gabriel Magalhaes. The Lille defender has joined Arsenal in a £25m deal.
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The negotiations are understood to be carried via an intermediary, Koulibaly’s agent Fali Ramidani. Man City and Napoli share an uncordial relationship since the fiasco involving Jorginho, who snubbed the Sky Blues at the eleventh hour for Chelsea. An indirect mode of communication is the prime factor which has protracted the deal.
"Aurelio De Laurentiis wants €90m for Kalidou Koulibaly.It’s already a ‘strong reduction’ from his demands a few weeks back, but the stubbornness shown by the Napoli owner hasn’t gone down well with Koulibaly himself.The player appears ‘annoyed’ at these demands, knowing full well ‘no-one will pay that amount for him’ in the current market. This is a difficult situation for the player, who wants ‘a new adventure’, but he won’t make a meal out of it or force an exit. (Sport Witness)"
Having already spent £41m to sign Nathan Ake from AFC Bournemouth, Pep Guardiola considers the Dutch international as an able defensive cover rather than a revolutionary figure to transform his leaky backline. Koulibaly is understood to be the perfect figure to help City maintain a high press system next season.
If the City faithful is going to have their way, there could be a moment on the horizon that could rewrite the club’s history books. Lionel Messi, who is extremely likely to leave FC Barcelona, could brace the blue colours of Manchester.
There are sufficient behind the scenes efforts to convince the Argentine wizard of Guardiola’s project. Recent developments also suggest of the Catalan manager having secret dialogues with Lionel Messi to make a move to the Premier League.