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Chelsea 'offered chance to sign Napoli's Kalidou Koulibaly'

Chelsea 'offered chance to sign Kalidou Koulibaly'
© Reuters
Chelsea are reportedly offered the chance to sign Napoli centre-back Kalidou Koulibaly to replace the departing Antonio Rudiger.

Chelsea have reportedly been offered the opportunity to sign Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly this summer.

Despite tying Thiago Silva down to a contract extension for another 12 months, Thomas Tuchel is still set to oversee a major defensive overhaul ahead of the 2022-23 season.

The Blues boss has already confirmed that Antonio Rudiger will leave upon the expiration of his contract, and the German is understood to be on the verge of completing a move to Real Madrid.

Andreas Christensen's contract is also due to expire next month and cannot be renewed while sanctions on Roman Abramovich remain in place, and the Dane is expected to join Barcelona.

Finally, Cesar Azpilicueta's long-term future at Chelsea is also far from clear, with the Spaniard also understood to be on the radar of the Blaugrana amid Chelsea's off-field woes.

Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly pictured in October 2020© Reuters

With the Blues sure to dip into the market to replace Rudiger if their situation allows, Area Napoli reports that Koulibaly has been offered to the European champions.

The Senegal international has been persistently linked with a Premier League switch over the past few transfer windows, with Manchester City and Manchester United previously tipped to complete a swoop.

Koulibaly has remained loyal to Napoli, but the 30-year-old's deal now has less than 18 months left to run, leaving the Serie A club in a tricky position regarding his future if fresh terms are not penned.

A recent report claimed that Barcelona were in advanced talks to sign Koulibaly, but Area Napoli insists that the Blaugrana are unlikely to pursue a move given their intent to stick with signing free agents.

As a result, agent Fali Ramandani has supposedly offered Chelsea the chance to sign the former Metz and Genk man in the upcoming window, and a fee of €35m (£29.9m) would be enough to prise him away from Naples.

Chelsea head coach Thomas Tuchel looking frustrated during fixture against Everton on May 1, 2022.© Reuters

An unnamed English club and Paris Saint-Germain are also rumoured to still be in the running for Koulibaly, who would allegedly be prepared to sign a new deal and end his career at Napoli if he does not secure a big-money move away this summer.

Napoli's third longest-serving player behind Dries Mertens, Lorenzo Insigne and Faouzi Ghoulam, Koulibaly has pulled on the blue jersey on 314 occasions, registering 14 goals and seven assists in the process.

The centre-back has amassed three goals and two assists from 24 Serie A appearances this term, meanwhile, as Luciano Spalletti's side sit eight points adrift of leaders Inter Milan with three games left to play.

Koulibaly missed a large portion of the season through a hamstring injury and the Africa Cup of Nations over the winter, where he started and saw out five games for Senegal en route to the trophy.

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