Man Utd get green light to sign dominant Liverpool favourite after major issue resolves itself
The path to bringing a dominant Serie A star to England has cleared for both Man Utd and Liverpool through a wholly encouraging double update.
One has to look no further for the finest stars Serie A has to offer than Napoli. Luciano Spalletti’s side hold an almighty 19-point lead over second-placed Lazio and have romped through to the quarter finals of the Champions League.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Victor Osimhen have been nothing short of sensational in the final third. At the back, it’s South Korea international Kim Min-jae who’s been the standout performer.
The 26-year-old was a £15m signing from Fenerbahce just last summer. However, that smart piece of business has quickly proved a steal and Napoli could soon pay the price for Kim performing at such a high level.
Indeed, Man Utd, Liverpool and Tottenham are all circling over Kim. Liverpool were even deemed ‘prepared to meet’ the centre-back’s release clause ahead of a summer swoop.
Fabrizio Romano recently reported Kim’s clause is set at “a bit less than €50m” (approx. £44m).
The clause can be triggered during a short window beginning on July 1. Romano specifically named Man Utd during his update, though did not mention Liverpool.
Napoli are understood to be keen on convincing Kim to sign a new deal. Doing so would allow them to either raise the value of the clause or remove it entirely.
Until that bridge is crossed, Napoli remain vulnerable to a raid for a price that already looks a bargain for a world class defender.
Today’s Euro Paper Talk brought news of Napoli seemingly warming to the idea of cashing in on Kim.
Their ideal scenario would be Kim first signing a new deal that ups or removes the clause, thus allowing them to recoup a far higher fee when the inevitable bidding war comes.
Now, a fresh update from Sky Sports has given the English suitors a second handy boost.
Path to Kim Min-jae clears
Sky report another of Kim’s would-be suitors, PSG, are no longer in the mix.
PSG could’ve posed a major threat to the English sides given their ability to commit to sky high salaries.
However, officials at the French giant have reportedly ‘distanced themselves’ from the speculation linking them to Kim.
PSG have other irons in the fire this summer, with the door now ajar for Man Utd, Liverpool or Spurs to strike. The three English sides are all namechecked in the Sky update.
Interestingly, Sky claim Kim’s release clause is actually worth €70m, not the roughly €50m reported by Romano.
The confusion may come from claims Kim’s clause differs depending on the location of the club who bid. Indeed, the Daily Mail state ‘it is now believed that the clause depends on who the South Korean would join’.
The outlet then speculate the bottom end of the price range is the one that’ll be available to English suitors.
The logic there is Napoli will have negotiated a premium in Kim’s clause for other Italian sides to reduce the chance of strengthening a domestic rival if the likes of Juventus or Inter Milan, for example, were to pounce.
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