Report: Manchester United Willing to Pay Faouzi Ghoulam's €60M Release Clause

Manchester United is reportedly showing interest in the Napoli left back, who is currently out with a torn ACL.

Manchester United are showing some serious interest in Napoli left back Faouzi Ghoulam.

The Algerian defender has a large release clause of €60m and Rai Sport (via IamNaples) are reporting that United are 'ready to pay' it.

Paris Saint-Germain are also said to have shown an interest in the 26-year-old, who has scored two goals and three assists from the left back position this season.

Manchester City were strongly linked with a move for Ghoulam last season, following the departures of Aleksandar Kolarov and Gael Clichy. However, Napoli showed how highly they value Ghoulam by offering him a new contract, in a bid to put speculation of a move to England to bed. It seemed to have worked, with Pep Guardiola opting to move for Monaco defender Benajamin Mendy instead.

Ghoulam subsequently signed Napoli's proposed deal, extending his stay with the Serie A leaders until 2022. However, it appears a recently-signed contract is not enough to deter Manchester United from making a serious bid 

If Ghoulam were to join Manchester United before the end of the January transfer window, he would not be able to play until next month, as he is still out with a cruciate ligament rupture he picked up in Napoli's Champions League tie against Manchester City.

With 35 caps for Algeria and 151 appearances for Napoli, Ghoulam is already an experienced defender at the age of 26. In 2014/15, he was named in the UEFA Europa League Squad of the Season.

In 2017, he was crowned Algerian Football of the Year, following in the footsteps of Riyad Mahrez who had won the award in 2015 and 2016.