Manchester United are preparing to tempt Napoli with a huge bid for Senegal defender Kalidou Koulibaly as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer continues the work of preparing for next season.

United are yet to announce their managerial plans for next term, with the caretaker boss currently due to stand down when his deal expires in June.

But the ex-striker is the firm favourite to land the role permanently, and central defender Koulibaly is a prime target as the Old Trafford re-build continues apace following years of a chaotic transfer policy, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport.

United are not alone in their pursuit of the Napoli man, with Real Madrid and Barcelona also keeping tracks on the 27 year-old as well as Premier League rivals Chelsea .

Napoli chief Aurelio de Laurentiis is believed to want somewhere in the region of £128million for his man, which would represent a sizeable return on the £6.5million the club shelled out to bring him in from Genk in 2014.

Kalidou Koulibaly joined Napoli from Genk in 2014 (
Image:
REUTERS)

He has been a dependable performer at the Stadio San Paolo in that time, and this season has turned out 20 times in Serie A as Napoli have cemented their place in second behind runaway leaders and champions Juventus .

He has been capped 31 times by Senegal, and featured as the team were knocked out in the first round at the World Cup in Russia in 2018.

Koulibaly has helped Napoli into second in Serie A this season (
Image:
AFP/Getty Images)

United have been heavily linked this week with Leicester's Harry Maguire, who is believed to be open to a move to Old Trafford having turned down the chance to join up with the side manager by Jose Mourinho last summer.

Should either of the central defensive pair arrive at Old Trafford in the summer it will likely spell the end to life at United for Eric Bailly and Marcus Rojo, both of whom have slipped down the pecking order under Solskjaer and already appear to have a limited future in red.