Manchester United are reportedly hopeful of sealing the transfer of Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly this January despite his club preferring not to sell until the summer.
The Red Devils have long been linked strongly with Koulibaly, who is up there with the likes of Milan Skriniar and Nikola Milenkovic as among their prime targets to strengthen that problem position of centre-back.
MORE: Manchester United rival Chelsea and Real Madrid for £99million transfer
The Daily Mirror have also linked Chelsea and Liverpool as holding an interest in the Senegal international, who is one of the best players in the world in his position.
Koulibaly may not be too likely to leave Napoli in the middle of the season, but United reporter Chris Winterburn has an intriguing update on the situation.
Winterburn claims United want to sign Koulibaly this month rather than wait until the summer, and will do what they can to bring him in as soon as possible if the opportunity presents itself.
Meanwhile, for those asking, Manchester United would like to sign Kalidou Koulibaly this month, but it’s very unlikely he’ll be available before the summer. If a deal presents itself in Jan they will sign the Senegal international, but I’d expect little to no Jan business.
— Chris Winterburn (@cmwinterburn) January 10, 2019
The 27-year-old is expected to cost €100million to prise away from his current club, which would be a world-record fee for a defender.
Virgil van Dijk joined Liverpool from Southampton for £75m last January, and is currently the most expensive defender of all time.
Koulibaly is of a similar calibre, however, and would be a great fit at any one of United, Chelsea or Liverpool.
