"?Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis has threatened to sue Chelsea over their proposed move for defender Kalidou Koulibaly, claiming that the player cost Napoli millions of euros when he admitted to the press earlier in the summer that he is likely to move in the summer - with Chelsea his most likely destination.
De Laurentiis has reacted furiously, slamming the player for the statement and claiming that it had cost the club millions in lost commercial deals - adding that the Blues could face legal action if it emerged that they had prompted Koulibaly to make the statement.
. @ADeLaurentiis feels "Gonzalo Higuain won't betray #Napoli , can be like Maradona" https://t.co/p0nhHZjyPO #LFC pic.twitter.com/mCkMSTFltE
The 24-year-old had told L'Equipe: "If nothing happens with Napoli, I'm going to start making contact with other clubs. I'm going to make the most favourable choice, not only financially but also on a sporting level - clubs of a high standing want me, and I've had no sign from Napoli."
De Laurentiis told Corriere dello Sport: "I had thought Koulibaly was a good man. The moment I realise you and your agent haven't read the contracts properly before signing them... I cannot tolerate that. Napoli were about to sign new commercial deals to use Koulibaly's image, but his statements cancelled those opportunities. His jersey cannot be sold now.
"He created damages worth millions of euros, and I have specialists studying the issue now," adding that "if we discovered that Chelsea were behind this, we could sue them for damages too. Koulibaly is 24 years old, he is not a kid."
Kalidou Koulibaly admits that he thinks he will leave Napoli & drops an Antonio Conte sized hint about his future https://t.co/gimwPpME32
He also suggested that Koulibaly's words could end up tying him to the club, saying that the Senegalese intentional "will continue working for us for the three years on his contract - maybe many more, until he's paid off the damages to Napoli."
"?For more from Chris when he's not writing on 90min, follow him on Twitter at @ThatChris1209!
Don't miss out - subscribe to the 90min podcast - now on iTunes HERE and back on SoundCloud over here!