Reports: Manchester City pushing to complete deal for €90m-rated Serie A superstar Kalidou Koulibaly

Manchester City are ramping up their efforts to sign Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly this summer, as per reports in Italy.

Pep Guardiola is keen to sign a defender this summer after the Cityzens notably suffered at the back. The former champions endured a horrific attempt at defending their English crown as they lost the league title by a staggering 18 points to Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool.

Given their shortage of central defenders and Manchester City needing reinforcements in that area of the pitch, Koulibaly has been earmarked as the perfect candidate for the role at the Etihad Stadium.

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Koulibaly is Manchester City's priority defender this year

Koulibaly is viewed as the ideal player to end Man City's defensive woes

As per Italian outlet Corriere Dello Sport, Manchester City are pushing to wrap up a deal for the Napoli centre-half ahead of the 2020/21 season. The report claims that City are pursuing the deal with 'mad and suffocating pressure' and add that his future in Italy is hanging by a thread.

The Partonopei are said to be looking for a fee of €90m for the 29-year-old, a figure that Manchester City are trying to bring down.

Guardiola's side have reportedly tabled a bid of €70m excluding other bonus clauses, an offer which Napoli aren't content with. The two clubs have been locked in negotiations to find a solution. The good news for Manchester City in this pursuit is that Koulibaly is also said to be keen on a move to the Etihad Stadium.

Koulibaly conceded a penalty against Barcelona

Napoli ended their Serie A campaign in seventh place, and will not be participating in any European competition next year — which is something that could favour Manchester City. The Naples club went toe-to-toe with Barcelona in their UEFA Champions League round of 16 tie but were ultimately eliminated by the Catalans by an aggregate scoreline of 4-2.

Koulibaly made headlines in the second leg, albeit for the wrong reasons. He accidentally smashed into the back of Lionel Messi's left ankle, unaware of the Argentine's presence behind him, leading to his side conceding a penalty at the Nou Camp.

The Senegalese came close to leaving last year and the year before when he garnered interest from the likes of Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain. The former were particularly interested in taking him to Old Trafford, but deemed Aurelio De Laurentiis' demands for his star man too high. They eventually broke the British record fee for Harry Maguire last summer, purchasing him for £80m.

50 - In Manchester City's victory against Norwich on Sunday, Aymeric @Laporte won his 50th Premier League game in what was just his 59th appearance; in doing so he surpassed Didier Drogba (60 apps) to become the quickest player to 50 wins in the competition's history. Rock. pic.twitter.com/Gio8Mc8kKQ

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) July 28, 2020

Although PSG are still in the running for Koulibaly, the reports from Italy claim that the defender is keen on moving to Manchester City. His agent Fati Ramadani is also on board and hopes to complete a deal as quickly as possible for his client to move to the Premier League. He is seen as the ideal partner for City's Aymeric Laporte, who has been excellent when fit.

Manchester City have already completed deals for Nathan Ake and Ferran Torres early on in the window, and would hope to achieve a deal for Koulibaly as well as part of their lavish summer spree.

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