Manchester United have been given the green light to sign Faouzi Ghoulam from Napoli, according to reports.
The left-back has a £53million release clause and Napoli are on the verge of securing a replacement.
Portuguese publication Record claim Alejandro Grimaldo is Napoli’s target and that the deal to bring the Benfica star to Italy is near completion.
Napoli will pay £26.6m for Grimaldo’s services and once the full-back has put pen to paper on a five-year deal, Ghoulam will be free to leave the club.
United have been monitoring Ghoulam, but have had to fight off competition from Chelsea and Liverpool.
Antonio Conte and Jurgen Klopp have long been linked with a move for Ghoulam, but it seems United have managed to beat their Premier League rivals to the exciting left-back.
Manchester United 2018/19 Fixtures
Fulham (A) - Feb 9
PSG (H) - Feb 12
Chelsea (A) - Feb 18
Liverpool (H) - Feb 24
Crystal Palace (A) - Feb 27
Southampton (H) - Mar 2
Ghoulam signed a new long-term contract with Napoli at the start of December to extend his current deal to the summer of 2020.
The fresh deal was a reaction from the Serie A side to attempts from Liverpool to lure the defender to England which included a rejected bid over the summer.
Manchester City have also been credited with an interest in Ghoulam, who has been playing in Italy since 2014.
Ghoulam is currently unavailable to play after tearing his cruciate knee ligament last November.
Jose Mourinho confirmed after United’s 2-0 win over Everton that he may be forced to dip into the January transfer market.
United have a host of first-team stars currently sidelined with injuries, with Mourinho opting to employ Ashley Young and Antonio Valencia at full-back in his time at Old Trafford.
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