Club waiting for Man Utd offer after rejecting Liverpool’s bid for £90m star

Napoli are hoping Manchester United will meet their £90m valuation for Kalidou Koulibaly after rejecting Liverpool’s opening £58m offer for the centre-back, according to reports coming out of Italy.

Koulibaly has earned a reputation as one of the best defenders in world football in recent years after starring for Napoli at the heart of their defence and his performances have not gone unnoticed at some of Europe’s top clubs.

The Senegalese international has been linked with a number of teams throughout the last few transfer windows and he’s once again being tipped for a move with Napoli set to miss out on European football following a disastrous Serie A campaign.

It seems the situation has alerted Liverpool as the Mirror are citing a report from the newspaper version of Corriere dello Sport that claims the Merseysiders have already submitted an offer worth around £58m for Koulibaly’s signature.

Liverpool won the Champions League last season and are on the verge of wrapping-up their first domestic title in 30 years but Jurgen Klopp is still looking to strengthen his squad and it seems he’s identified Koulibaly as a prime target.

Joe Gomez has progressed well this season and has a great future ahead of him but the future’s of Dejan Lovren and Joel Matip are uncertain and Klopp could be eyeing Koulibaly as the man to form a devastating partnership with Virgil van Dijk.

However, Liverpool are still some way off getting a deal agreed as Corriere dello Sport, via the Mirror, says Napoli have already rejected their opening offer and are holding out for the full value of their £90m price-tag.

The Mirror claims Manchester United are also chasing Koulibaly and Corriere dello Sport, via TeamTalk, says Napoli are hoping United or Paris Saint Germain will formalise their interest and match their £90m valuation.

Man Utd have the financial resources available to buy Koulibaly but the 29-year-old will want Champions League football if he’s to leave Naples and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side are currently sitting outside the automatic Champions League qualification places.

United could still qualify by finishing fifth if Man City’s ban appeal is rejected and they may yet overhaul Chelsea’s five point lead to finish fourth so they should be considered as serious contenders for Koulibaly if the defender comes to England.

Solskjaer is expected to be busy in the market this summer and a world class player like Koulibaly would be an excellent addition to the United squad but we’ll have to wait and see whether they formalise their interest over the coming months.

As it stands, it appears Liverpool have made the first move to sign the centre-back but the champions-elect will have to significantly increase their offer if they want to get a deal agreed with Napoli.