With the summer transfer window soon coming into view, the top teams across Europe will be looking to secure the best talent available and, with the coronavirus pandemic in mind, at the best possible price.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is building a team in his image at Manchester United, and with the addition of a few new faces, the Red Devils may well be in a position to be challenging for silverware in the not too distant future.
To that end, news that Napoli won’t be able to keep hold of all of their players is likely to be music to the Norwegian’s ears.
According to the Daily Mirror, Kalidou Koulibaly is a target for United, and Napoli coach, Gennaro Gattuso’s words after their triumph over Juventus in the Coppa Italia final, has offered them hope that the centre-back could be on the move during the summer.
“We don’t need to operate too much in the market,” Gattuso is quoted as saying by the Daily Mirror.
“We have to see who’s going to leave us. Our chairman knows it – we speak about it every week. This is a strong team but I think that only 70-80% of the players will stay with us.
“We will do a few transfers but I know this team has great quality [already].”
Koulibaly, if he were to be offered up for sale, is unlikely to come cheaply, with the Daily Mirror suggesting that it will take more than the £80m they spent on Harry Maguire to secure the player.
In the current market, that’s an awful lot of money to be spending, but the 28-year-old’s physicality, ball-playing skills and distribution mark him out as one of Europe’s best.
When those types of players become available United have to be at the head of the queue.