Ex-Anfield boss wants to work with midfielder battler at Napoli.
Napoli want to sign Barcelona’s Javier Mascherano in the summer, according to a former member of the Serie A club’s staff.
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Rafa Benitez is a known admirer of the Argentine, who he signed for Liverpool in 2007, and this is not the first time the Napoli boss has been linked with a move for Mascherano.
A former member of Napoli’s medical staff claims Diego Maradona, no less, told him the Italians want to bring Mascherano to the San Paolo but are yet to agree a deal with the Catalans.
“The club needs to buy a central defensive figure of international standing,” former Napoli massage therapist Salvatore Carmando told Radio Kiss Kiss Napoli (quotes via Football Italia).
“According to what Diego Maradona told me during a dinner at the Hotel Eden in Rome, it seems as if the President has already chosen Mascherano.
“The deal is not complete with Barcelona yet, but negotiations have been going on for a long time. For now they are just waiting for the player’s final decision.”
Maradona was Mascherano’s head-coach for Argentine and retains close links with his former club Napoli.