5 players Manchester United want to sign in January

#1 Kalidou Koulibaly (Napoli)

SSC Napoli v Red Star Belgrade - UEFA Champions League Group C

Kalidou Koulibaly is a 27-year-old centre-back who plays for Napoli in Serie A. He also features for the Senegal national team, having made 31 appearances since his debut in September 2015. Originally, he was playing for France's U20 team, which is the country where he was born, but his heritage is Senegalese.

Koulibaly is a beast of a defender and has attracted interest from high-profile clubs across Europe for several years now. Manchester United are supposedly the frontrunners for his signature in January, primarily because of their desperation to sign a world class defender before time runs out - which is what they failed to do in the summer.

Koulibaly had a fairly standard start to his career, having been transferred to FC Metz B from SR Saint-Die in the summer of 2009. He was then promoted to FC Metz's first team a year later, where he stayed for the next two years. Belgian side KRC Genk saw the potential in Koulibaly and picked him up in mid-2012 for just £1m. Within two seasons, his value had risen to almost £7m, and he was sold to Napoli in 2014, where he currently resides.

Transfermarkt now value the centre-back at a whopping £63m, £56m more than what Napoli had paid for him four years ago.

Rumour probability: 3/10

This is a tough rumour to dismiss, especially when we all know how desperate United are to bolster their defence next month. But goal.com recently reported that a £95m bid from United had been turned down by Napoli, according to the club's chairman Aurelio De Laurentiis.

Now, when offers as high as this are being flat-out rejected by Napoli, you have to wonder how much more United can do to get their man. This is what makes the deal all the more unlikely with each passing day. Napoli seem determined to keep hold of their star player, and will do so by any means possible.