Newcastle United and Chelsea are being lined up for a €40m battle for Werder Bremen centre-back Karim Coulibaly this summer.
BILD report on the 18-year-old today and how his breakout season in the Bundesliga has Chelsea and Newcastle ready for a summer battle.
Bundesliga rising talent
Karim Coulibaly joined Werder Bremen from HSV Hamburg’s youth academy in 2024 and has seen his season truly take off this year.
He has established himself in the Bundesliga and is enjoying a solid, first professional season. As a result, half of Europe is after the German U21 international.
Chelsea and Newcastle have shown ‘particularly strong’ interest in him, alongside Marseille. Borussia Dortmund could also be in the mix as they look towards the future.
A transfer is not out of the question either, despite a contract until 2031. Any interested parties, though, will need to pay at least €40m. That would make him Werder Bremen’s most expensive departure ever.
Chelsea and Newcastle United interest
Whether Chelsea or Newcastle United would be willing to match that price is unclear at this point. But reports have linked both clubs with a move for weeks.
A report at the beginning of this month stated that both clubs had sent officials to watch the youngster. That report stated that a transfer this summer was 100% planned.
PSG were then brought into the mix as competition for Newcastle. A report last week then stated that the asking price for Chelsea was €45m.
Now BILD report that the asking price is €40m. The newspaper insists that both sides are showing ‘particularly strong’ interest in the 18-year-old. His performances in the Bundesliga seem to have established him as a youngster for the future and everyone wants him.
Karim Coulibaly might have a decision to make then. Does he remain in the Bundesliga, or take a chance on the Premier League if Chelsea and Newcastle make firm bids?