While the vast majority of reports in Italy suggested Manchester United were the ones pushing the most for Kalidou Koulibaly, Il Mattino see it differently.
To them, as things stand, it’s a two horse race for the Napoli defender between Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City.
In fact, there’s no mention of the Red Devils, explaining that the pressing from both the Premier League and Ligue 1 champions ‘will take your breath away from this spring’.
That suggests the two clubs are really pushing to sign the defender, and Il Mattino state they have already proposed contracts to the player’s agent, Fali Ramadani.
The representative is said to ‘have the offers of the Parisian and Manchester City emirs in his hands’, but that ‘neither club has formalised a request to Napoli’.
What helps the Italian club in this is the fact Ramadani and Aurelio De Laurentiis ‘have an extraordinary relationship’, meaning there will be ‘no rudeness’ from Koulibaly’s entourage about pushing for a move.
It’s reported the ‘right price is around €100m’, which obviously reduces the amount of suitors capable of paying such an amount, but the Senegal international has already made his mind up.
Il Mattino write Koulibaly ‘in his heart, has already chosen his future: he wants to go to PSG’.
However, there are things we want, and then there are the things we get, and the defender is aware that negotiations to get his move to Paris won’t be simple.
As for the flat he bought in the French capital, Il Mattino make it clear ‘it is an investment like many that a footballer makes in his life’, yet they add ‘it would be a source of pride for Kalidou to wear the country’s most representative club jersey’.
Not the best news for Manchester City and Pep Guardiola, but we’re sure that if they really want him, they can make him an offer he might end up consdering.
