Borussia Mönchengladbach defender Ko Itakura is being touted as a potential replacement for Kim Min-Jae, who is close to completing his move to Bayern. Napoli are in need of a new centre-back this summer and have been surveying Europe and beyond in their hunt for a strong presence in the back line.
Recent reports have linked the Scudetto holders with Wolverhampton Wonderers defender Max Kilman, but their first bid was deemed too low by the Premier League club.
Il Corriere dello Sport state that Itakura’s name is now climbing the rankings for a post-Kim era, given that his cost and availability is expected to work in their favour.
Itakura’s agents have reportedly stated that the player has offers from Saudi club Al-Nassr, but the 26-year-old is ‘close to signing with Napoli’.
The newspaper writes:
“Kilman and Le Normand have a mighty appeal and yet also (almost) unsustainable costs. To hand over Kim’s legacy to Ko Itakura, Napoli would only need about €15 million less, far less than what Wolverhampton dreams of collecting for Kilman (€40m) and Le Normand’s clause (€50m). To stay safe, with no more worries or gaps, and not to shake up the budget to which De Laurentiis reserves strict respect, betting on Ko Itakura also means negotiating a salary that has a much lower basis than those of the two terrible opponents.”
[Image from Fifa.com]
