Southampton are in hot pursuit of Lille defender Kevin Malcuit and are primed with a major bid, according to Gianluca Di Marzio.
The Sky Sports Italy journalist reported on his personal website last night that the Premier League club are willing to blow Napoli out of the water to land the full-back.
Di Marzio explains Southampton are set to offer more than the Serie A big hitters for Malcuit, who joined Lille from Saint-Étienne last summer for £8million.
Good move for Southampton?
Yes, definitely. Southampton already have a solid right-back in Cedric Soares, but Malcuit has the pedigree to not only challenge for a first-team spot but be a regular in the starting XI in the upcoming season. The Frenchman has spent a good portion of his career in Ligue 2 but he has come on in leaps and bounds in the last season or two, to the extent where he was a key man for Lille last season, defending solidly and overlapping with real threat on the counterattack. His tally of five assists from 23 league matches was a highly impressive one for a full-back.
This Is Futbol rating 8/10
Likely to happen?
Di Marzio is an outstanding source of transfer news, particularly when it comes to Italian-related deals. Malcuit falls into that category due to Napoli’s interest, and the journalist’s claim that Southampton will bid more is a gamechanger. It is likely he will cost around double the £8million fee spent by Lille 12 months ago, given his improvement, the fact he has four years remaining on his contract and the huge transfer market inflation.
This Is Futbol rating 7/10