Chelsea are facing increased competition in the hunt for Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly as Barcelona have joined the hunt, according to Mundo Deportivo via CalcioMercato.
Blues boss Maurizio Sarri is keen to improve his options in defence as both Gary Cahill and David Luiz are rapidly approaching the end of their contracts, although the latter looks set to earn a one-year extension.
Koulibaly, who worked with Sarri in Naples, is one of the names on Chelsea’s shortlist but a fierce fight looks set to emerge for the services of the Senegal international as Manchester United and Barcelona are both eyeing a deal.
The report says the LaLiga champions are preparing an offer of £57.3m for the 27-year-old defender, who recently signed a contract extension with the Serie A side which raised his release clause to a whopping £176m – but that only comes into effect in 2020.
Any offer for Koulibaly would have to exceed the fee currently being mentioned amidst Barcelona’s interest though as Napoli are determined not to sell.
