Manchester United have reportedly decided against making a move for Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly during the next transfer window.
The Senegal international has been on the radar of the Red Devils over the past few years and United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer remains a keen admirer of the former Genk man.
A recent report suggested that United are leading the race to sign the central defender and they could prise him away from Napoli with a bid of around £74m at the end of the season.
However, the Manchester Evening News has dismissed the story by stating that the club don’t view the defender as an ‘essential target’ for the 2020 summer transfer window.
United purchased Harry Maguire with a world-record fee for a defender last summer and the England international has been a quality performer alongside Victor Lindelof.
Aside from the duo, United have the likes of Eric Bailly, Axel Tuanzebe and Phil Jones currently in the squad as back-up while Marcos Rojo and Chris Smalling will return after their loan stints at Estudiantes and AS Roma respectively.
Smalling and Rojo are likely to head through the exit door on permanent deals during the summer due to their requirement for regular gametime and M.E.N claims that Jones’ future is also in doubt.
Meanwhile, Solskjaer has had the preference of signing young and prime-age players and Koulibaly probably does not fall into that category, considering he would be 29 by the start of next season.
It remains to be seen whether the club will plan to sign a younger centre-back in the form of Dayot Upamecano, who could be available for a reduced £35m fee from RB Leipzig.
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