Transfer News: Chelsea target Koulibaly signs new deal at Napoli with €70m buy-out clause

Napoli president has announced that Chelsea target Kalidou Koulibaly has signed a contract extension with the Serie A outfit.

Chelsea fans would clearly remember the name of the central defender from the frantic summer transfer window. The Blues were constantly linked with failed bids for the player with Antonio Conte and the board feeling frustrated at Napoli’s changing demands.

Napoli were reported to be raising the asking price on each instance of Chelsea’s approach which saw the Blues start with an opening bid of around €20m and ending up with a final attempt around the €50m mark, which was also knocked back by the club in Naples.

Chelsea ended up re-signing David Luiz from Paris Saint-Germain on deadline day but it is reported that the Blues have retained their interest in the Serie A defender. Koulibaly was rumoured to be close to a contract extension with the club and Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentis confirmed on Monday through a tweet from his official account that the player has indeed signed a new deal with the club.

The 25-year-old’s new deal sees him extend his current contract to 2021. But, contrary to the belief that the contract extension would mean that the Blues would find it harder to secure a deal for the Frenchman, Chelsea would instead be encouraged with rumours of a release clause included in the contract.

Italian Football Daily have speculated that as per various sources in Italy, Koulibaly’s new deal includes a minimum release clause of €70m which means that Chelsea would at least be clear on the financial front as they would know a definite and fixed amount that would enable them to have their bid accepted for the 25-year-old.

One could make a case that any approach from Chelsea would depend highly on their performance going into January and Antonio Conte could very well decide to splash the cash on the 25-year-old if he feels that the Chelsea defence remains shaky.