With Lorenzo Insigne and probably Dries Mertens leaving, Napoli will reportedly offer Kalidou Koulibaly a new contract and the captain’s armband.
Insigne has already signed for Toronto FC and will move to MLS as a free agent when his current contract with the Partenopei expires on June 30.
Mertens has an option to extend his deal at the end of the season, but Napoli appear to have no intention of using it, ready to let their all-time top scorer walk away.
According to the Corriere dello Sport, the next step will see Napoli offer Koulibaly a new contract and make him the centre of their squad.
His current deal runs to June 2023 and he had been on the market for several years, nobody ever reaching the €100m asking price, which then dropped to €80m.
Koulibaly is a fan favourite and the natural heir to the captain’s armband after Insigne and Mertens.
The 30-year-old centre-back was signed from KRC Genk in 2014 for €7.75m and is currently on international duty at the Africa Cup of Nations with Senegal.
#Napoli, #Koulibaly Capitan Futuro dopo #Insigne: rinnovo e fascia ➡️ https://t.co/y15pOFMFaN
— Corriere dello Sport (@CorSport) January 30, 2022
It will be very foolish if ADL lets Mertens go. Better to renew his contract either by two years or on a year-to-year basis, especially as Mertens has said several times that money will never be an issue. The man loves Naples, the city, and the Neapolitans love him right back. ADL, come to your senses!
Agree cometely Joel. I love that we’re finally making Koulibaly captain (Insigne never had the captain’s mentality, IMO). But letting Mertens go when he’s not asking for loads of money like Insigne seems very foolish.