At this point it does look like Man United are well-placed to sign Raphael Varane after agreeing personal terms with him, but you always need to have a backup plan and it’s not clear if Real Madrid will agree to let him go.
Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly has often been spoken about as a player who could step up to one of the elite clubs, but he did turn 30 this summer and there’s a feeling that time could be running out if he’s looking for a major transfer.
A report from Goal has indicated that Man United are looking at him so he could be seen as an alternative to Varane, while a report from Football Italia has given a greater insight into his availability this summer.
They quote the Napoli manager Luciano Spalletti as confirming that the defender is “on the market” this summer, but it’s still thought that it would take a fee of at least €65m to convince them to sell.
When you consider his age he may only have two or three years left at the highest level so there may not be a lot of value in paying that much for him when he’s the wrong side of 30, but he’s someone to look out for if the Varane deal doesn’t go anywhere.