Huge: Agent in London, Chelsea to complete signing of world-class defender this weekend
Aug 11, 2016 at 11:21 AM
Chelsea target Kalidou Koulibaly’s future will be sorted out withing this week, claims the highly-rated defender’s agent.
The Blues are after the Napoli defender throughout this summer. Antonio Conte wants a new centre-back and has identified Koulibaly as his No.1 target.
Reports yesterday claimed Chelsea had an offer rising to £42.5m rejected for the Senegal star, with Napoli reluctant to sell until they have landed a replacement.
Interestingly, Torino rejected Napoli’s €50m bid for Nikola Maksimovic initially but now it seems Torino have agreed to go Maksimovic and that means Chelsea can have Koulibaly.
Despite the bid being turned down, Chelsea are believed to be still confident of making the deal successful.
And the 25-year-old’s agent has now said they’ll know by next week if they’ve got their man.
“Although our discussions at the moment are confidential,” Bruno Satin told Goal.
“We will be able to announce something in the next few days, two or three days.”
Meanwhile, Corriere Dello Sport highlighted a bit more about these talks between Chelsea and Napoli and claim that a ‘final summit’ in London has already taken place over a stunning €50m bid.
The 25-year-old Napoli defender was impressive for the Serie A giants throughout last season, making 33 appearances as his team finished runners-up to Juventus.
And his exciting form apparently caught the eye of new Chelsea boss, Antonio Conte, with the Italian making the Senegal international his top priority target this summer as he is keen to overhaul his new squad following their unexpected 10th place Premier league finish last term.
Conte needs a new defender with just Kurt Zouma, Gary Cahill and John Terry his only first-team options at the back.
Skipper Terry, 35, is expected to play a reduced role this season, while Zouma is recovering from a knee injury.
Right-back Branislav Ivanovic could cover the central positions until a permanent arrival is sorted.