Napoli make €23 million offer to Porto for Hector Herrera

For the last year, one of the men on the top of the shopping list for Napoli has been Hector Herrera of FC Porto. Their previous attempts to sign him have been rebuffed by the Portuguese side, but it’s believed that Napoli are hopeful that their latest €23 million offer will be accepted after Herrera himself is believed to have gotten involved to try and force the deal through.

Herrera is coming off a successful spell with the Mexico national team at the Copa America Centenario — successful up until his side was battered by Chile to the tune of a 7-0 quarterfinal loss, at least. Still, Herrera was arguably Mexico’s best player at the Copa, and has been both one of Mexico’s best and Porto’s best players for several years now. He joined Porto in 2013 for an €11 million fee and has proved well worth the investment, but at 26 years old, apparently Herrera feels it’s time to move on, a decision Napoli will gladly oblige.

Napoli see Herrera as a crucial part of their midfield going forward, offering a skillset similar to Allan’s but superior in almost every way. He would provide that second game-changing player in midfield that the partenopei have long sought, and help dramatically improve the team’s structure and depth in the process.

Porto have been loathe to give him up, demanding fees north of €30 million in each of the past two transfer windows, fees that Napoli have been unwilling to pay. Now there’s been reports that Herrera himself wants to come to Napoli, that he feels they’re the correct next step for his career, and Napoli are hoping that will be enough to to get Porto to relent.

If Napoli can sign Herrera, it would be a fantastic move, one that would instantly make them better and a real threat in the Champions League and Serie A. It’s impossible not to get excited about this, because if Herrera does sign with Napoli, it will only be a good thing.