Napoli are emerging as a major threat to AC Milan's bid to sign Manchester United's Marcus Rashford after conceding defeat in their attempts to keep Georgian winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia at the club.
Kvaratskhelia has been identified as the player who will kick-start Paris Saint-Germain's rebuild following Kylian Mbappe's move to Real Madrid in the summer. Napoli boss Antonio Conte has now revealed that the man who is also attracting interest from Liverpool is likely on his way out.
But Conte is demanding a top-class replacement to keep his bid for the Serie A title on track – and the Naples club are now expected to strengthen their interest in Rashford.
United wanted to raise £70million for the England international this month after he revealed he was looking for a new challenge.
But while there is no shortage of interest in the winger, it now appears that a loan deal represents the best chance of a transfer.
Rashford currently earns £300,000 a week at Old Trafford – and Milan hoped the Reds would continue to pay a significant portion of his wages when they expressed interest in the signing.
Kvaratskhelia's departure to PSG would give them the space to offer United a better financial settlement.
Rashford's head has been turned by interest from Barcelona, with PSG, Monaco and Borussia Dortmund also contacting United to work out the parameters of a possible deal.
But Barca would have to sell players first to free up enough money from their wage bill to meet La Liga rules and are embroiled in a legal battle just to secure the registration of £51million new signing Dani Olmo.
Rashford could decide to be patient to see if the Catalan club takes the necessary steps to reach an agreement.
But if Napoli can quickly agree a deal with PSG for Kvaratskhelia, they will be well placed to fund a bid that would allow Rashford to team up in Italy with his former United teammate Scott McTominay.
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