Chelsea are closing in on the signing of Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly this summer, according to reports.
The 31-year-old was among the options considered by Chelsea in a bid for Thomas Tuchel to rebuild his Blues defence for the 2022/23 season.
Andreas Christensen and Antonio Rudiger left at the end of their contracts last month and the Chelsea head coach is now targeting replacements to fill the void.
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Several targets have been noted - Koulibaly, Nathan Ake, Matthijs de Ligt, Presnel Kimpembe and Jules Kounde are all of interest to Chelsea.
Koulibaly is seen as an alternative to De Ligt, who Chelsea believe is likely to join Bayern Munich during the summer transfer window.
Chelsea have made their move quickly for the Senegal international, who would link up with fellow countryman Edouard Mendy and former teammate Jorginho if he is to make the switch to Stamford Bridge.
Reports came out on Tuesday suggesting that Chelsea were closing in on a deal for the central defender, and Koulibaly even offered an update on a possible move to London.
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He admitted: “I'll confirm that later, but it's on the right track.”
After talks between the club and his agent, a move now appears to be on the verge of being agreed and completed.
As reported by Gianluca Di Marzio, Chelsea are pushing to get a move done to beat Barcelona to the defender and are hoping to close the deal soon.
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A fee of €38 million plus €2 million in add-ons is likely to be accepted as the Blues ready their official bid to the Serie A club.
Koulibaly is believed to have accepted personal terms of a five-year contract worth around £7 million-a-year plus bonuses.
Nick Purewal of PA reports that Napoli were convinced to sell Koulibaly, who has one year left on his current deal, after accepting his wish of a big transfer which may not happen if he didn’t depart this summer.
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Napoli were impressed by Chelsea co-owner Todd Boehly during negotiations, a welcomed change that drove talks following tricky dealings with the Stamford Bridge outfit in the past prior to the ownership change.
Head coach Thomas Tuchel nearly has his man. He was driving the interest and will hope Koulibaly can join up with the squad in the United States during their pre-season tour.
He is set to join Raheem Sterling as the first arrivals this summer after the Manchester City winger flew to Los Angeles to meet the squad on Tuesday ahead of the official confirmation of his transfer.
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Tuchel is being backed this summer. His targets are being worked on and the club are so far delivering.
Sterling, Koulibaly and Ake appear to be the first three additions this summer from the level of negotiations taking place so far.
Featured Image Credit: AlamyTopics: Kalidou Koulibaly, Chelsea, Napoli, Todd Boehly, Thomas Tuchel
