Man Utd paid €60m for Napoli star but deal fell through

Italian journalist Ciro Venerato has confirmed Manchester United had agreed on a €60 million deal with Napoli for defender Faouzi Ghoulam, only for an injury to scupper the move.

Faouzi has been at Napoli since 2014 after completing a £4.5 million deal from AS Saint-Etienne on deadline day of the January transfer market that year.

He has enjoyed himself at the Italian club, establishing himself as a starting player under several head coaches over the years.

That had often seen him mentioned with a big-money move away, particularly to England, with Manchester United often named as suitors.

Back in 2018, there were claims about a potential move to Old Trafford, with rumours stating United had made a €45m offer and offered him a €6m salary.

Ultimately that move never happened, and the Algerian stayed at the club, continuing to shine before a succession of injuries limited his playing time.

This year has been a particularly frustrating one for him, though, as he has managed just seven matches and 333 minutes of football in total.

This summer could see the player moved on and, when discussing his future, Venerato says United’s bid went much higher than what was claimed.

“Napoli had sold Faouzi Ghoulam to Manchester United for an amount equal to €60m”, Ciro told Goal Show, relayed by Area Napoli.

“Mendes, on behalf of the Neapolitan company, had blocked another very good full-back for €30m: Grimaldo. But then the double deal didn’t go through because Ghoulam was injured.”