Pepé, bomber of Lille, entered the sights of Naples (photos from YouTube)
NAPLES – Aurelio De Laurentiis came out into the open for Pepé. Napoli presented a maxi bid of 60 million euros to Lille plus Adam Ounas' ticket for a total of around 80 million euros. An incredible investment that would preclude the arrival in Naples of other top level players like James Rodriguez and Mauro Icardi.
Pepé is an Ivorian striker born in 1995 who exploded during the last season with the beauty of 23 goals in 40 games and numerous assists for his teammates. Ancelotti prefers it to Icardi because compared to the Argentine it is less static and is capable of varying on the whole offensive front not giving reference points to the adversaries.
Pepé can cover all the roles of the attack, he can play as a striker but also as a second striker because he has an unusual physicality. This fact makes it very appealing for Napoli because it could deploy it either in tandem with Milik or with Mertens or even in a trident of wonders with all three players from the first minute.
Tottenham and Psg also like the Ivorian striker but Napoli is showing more determination in closing this deal. Lille appreciates both the offer and the inclusion of Ounas as a technical counterpart. Now we need to understand if the Algerian striker is willing to move to France or not.
If significant progress has been made on the Pepé front, the James Rodriguez affair is complicated. The Colombian footballer gave his word to Carlo Ancelotti but Napoli cannot find an agreement with Real Madrid. The Blancos have spent more than 300 million euros on the market and need to sell players in midfield to attempt the assault on Paul Pogba.
Outgoing there are Ceballos, James Rodriguez and Isco. Real Madrid has no preferences, it will sell the two players that it will manage to place first outright and obviously on its terms.
This is why the Naples offer based on the loan with a redemption obligation has been returned to the sender. Real Madrid wants everything and immediately, wants to sell its outgoing players outright to immediately have the money to invest in the purchase of Paul Pogba (source Il Corriere dello Sport).
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Source: Blitz Quotidiano