At the peak of the long rumours linking Kalidou Koulibaly with a move to Manchester United, Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis appeared to ‘leak’ to the club’s local press that a €105m offer had arrived from Old Trafford and been rejected.
It was mentioned continually as if fact, and on occasion people in the Naples media would drop their guard and more or less admit the claim had come from De Laurentiis himself.
The whole thing felt like it was part of an effort to drive the defender’s perceived value through the roof, and keep it there despite reality suggesting it should fall.
Koulibaly turns 30-years-of-age in less than a month, and there’s a growing realisation Napoli won’t get anything like the €105m ‘indecent proposal’ it’s insisted Manchester United made.
That’s what Corriere dello Sport explain in their Friday edition, saying the player wants a meeting with De Laurentiis to decide what his future will be. According to the report, the defender’s agent Fali Ramadani was told a month ago the player is now valued at €60-65m, yet even that seems high in the current market.
Manchester City made attempts to sign Koulibaly last summer, before they made the excellent move for Ruben Dias, and they became frustrated after weeks of messages 
between agent and club.
Liverpool continue to be linked on a weekly basis, although that seems an unlikely destination with the imminent arrival of Ibrahima Konate, so it’s quite possible Manchester United will be dragged back in.
That €105m, however, can long be forgotten.
