Speaking recently on TalkSport, reporter Alex Crook revealed Everton are interested in signing Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly this summer.
The Senegal international previously worked with current Toffees boss Carlo Ancelotti at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium, and now the Premier League outfit are keen to reunite the pair.
Ancelotti’s side have made good progress this campaign, with the Toffees set to better last season’s finish of 12th by some way, and now Everton are reportedly ready to go back into the market to improve even further.
Koulibaly has continuously been linked with some of the continent’s top clubs in recent seasons, but the Merseyside outfit have a new world-class stadium on the horizon, and Crook believes they want a team to match.
He said: “Koulibaly is in the news but definite interest and genuine interest from Everton. Sounds like Carlo Ancelotti is going to be backed this summer.
“I think they’re just going to fall short this season in terms of being contenders for a Champions League place, but they believe they’ve got the right manager in place in Ancelotti to challenge at that kind of level, probably not, at this moment in time, got the squad depth to do so.
“Koulibaly is someone that Ancelotti worked with at Napoli, knows him well, £89m was the fee being talked about this time last year.
“I think given the global economy when it comes to football, that fee would be dramatically reduced now, and I think Ancelotti would like to get this deal done.”
TIF Thoughts on Koulibaly…
Securing the signature of James Rodriguez from Real Madrid last summer was a statement of intent from this ambitious Everton setup, however, if they could get Koulibaly through the doors at Goodison Park, then that would arguably be even more significant.
The likes of Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain have been strongly linked with the 29-year-old in the past, before being put off by his price tag, but with the prices of players expected to be slashed due to the pandemic, Everton could swoop in and take advantage.
It’s been 26 years since the Toffees last got their hands on some silverware, but that run looks like it could end in the not-too-distant future if they can get this one over the line.