Manchester United wanted to sign Napoli star Kalidou Koulibaly under Jose Mourinho in 2018, but manager Carlo Ancelotti has ensured the £88m deal will not materialise.
Carlo Ancelotti has successfully persuaded Kalidou Koulibaly to stay at Napoli following a huge transfer offer from Manchester United. Koulibaly spoke about how the legendary Italian manager broke away with a blockbuster contract at Old Trafford in 2018.
Seven years ago, Jose Mourinho was keen to sign United’s top-quality centre-back, along with Harry Maguire and Toby Alderweireld, and Koulibaly was a high-profile target. Coulibaly was in such good form at Napoli that United made him an offer, but the Senegalese international remembers the offer was €100m (currently £88m).
He was ready to jump into a Premier League team. The Premier League side had Chris Smalling and Victor Lindelof selected as their first-choice combination in central defence. However, Napoli had no intention of letting him go. And it was Ancelotti’s intervention that changed everything.
“Napoli had an offer worth 100 million euros from Manchester United, but they rejected it,” Koulibaly told the podcast “Zac en Lou Libre”, broadcast by Tutto Mercato.
read more: Manchester United make major injury update for Lisandro Martinez after postponed returnread more: Barcelona hold advantage after Jim Ratcliffe thwarts shock move, Man United move hurt
“Ancelotti came to me and said: “I came here to win the Scudetto. What do you want?” I said: “I wanted to quit, why?” He said he knew about the offer but if I had quit, he would have quit the next day.”
Koulibaly joined Napoli from Genk in 2014 for around £6.5 million and felt the time was right to make a move. However, his manager’s experience and persuasive powers eventually changed his mind.
“I thought my time in Napoli was over,” he added. “I gave it my all. I spent four seasons there and I probably got the best contract of my career.
“In the evening, Ancelotti called me and said, “Come to my room.” He opened the door and said, “Ah, mo ami caridou!” He spoke French and we were both in our pajamas. I was shocked. I explained to him that I was not happy and that I thought the way the President was speaking showed a lack of respect for me. ”
The deal was canceled and Koulibaly will remain at Napoli for a further four years before joining Chelsea in 2022. The centre-back only spent one season with the Blues before moving to Al Hilal in 2023, where he remains.
United were unable to sign Koulibaly, but spent £80m the following summer to sign Maguire from Leicester City. The England international remains at the club and joined for the 2019/20 season alongside Bruno Fernandes, who took over as captain.
Join our new MAN UTD WhatsApp community and receive your daily Manchester United content from Mirror Football. Community members also receive special offers, promotions, and advertisements from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check it out whenever you like. If you are interested, please read our privacy notice.
Sky Sports Premier League and EFL package discounts
£49
£35
sky
Get the deal here
Sky has reduced the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle ahead of the 2025/26 season, saving members £336 on their bill and offering more than 1,400 live matches from Premier League, EFL and more.
Sky will broadcast at least 215 live Premier League matches next season, with an increase of up to 100 more.
