With Frank Lampard looking to ensure that his Chelsea team progress next season, news that the Blues are interested in a €75m-rated centre-back will surely be music to the ears of the west London club’s supporters.
Taking questions in a Twitter Q&A, Bleacher Report’s resident Football Insider, Dean Jones, suggested that there was real interest from the Blues in Napoli’s Kalidou Koulibaly.
“He has a lot of interest from Man City,” Jones said, and noted by Bleacher Report.
“Chelsea are definitely interested as well. I’m not entirely sure how much he wants to come into English football, but I’ve been told he’s keen to make a move this year and push himself to the next level.”
Tuttosport, cited by AS, noted that former Napoli manager, Carlo Ancelotti said this time a year ago Koulibaly had a release clause of €150m and the Italians had no need to sell.
With the coronavirus pandemic causing all sorts of financial problems for clubs, however, that figure has now been drastically revised.
According to AreaNapoli, journalist Fabio Santini spoke about Koulibaly in January during a programme called The Process, broadcast on 7 Gold, but suggested that Manchester United was his destination.
“Napoli will sell Kalidou Koulibaly to Manchester United for an amount of 70, 75 million (euros),” he said.
Clearly, the player remains in demand, and if Chelsea want to secure his services, then Lampard will surely have to show his hand quickly in order to get ahead of the competition.