Napoli want Geronimo Rulli, but not for €40 million

Napoli are in dire need of new blood in goal, and to that end they seem to have made Real Sociedad goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli their primary target. What they don’t want to do, however, is pay too much, and with Sociedad initially requesting that Napoli pay his release clause, it looks like there’s work to be done on the negotiating front.

Rulli’s contract contains a €40 million release clause that Sociedad would certainly love to have triggered, but Napoli’s first offer is reported to be closer to €26 million. That number, while far from the clause, was enough to get negotiations started, negotiations that according to Gianluca DiMarzio have Napoli hopeful getting a deal done.

According to reports out of Italy over the last couple of days, Napoli want Rulli to work with and behind Pepe Reina for a season before taking over as the full-time goalkeeper, but it also has to be said that Rulli is good enough now to push Reina for the starting job. The 25 year old Argentine started all 38 league matches for Sociedad last season, giving up 53 goals behind a shaky defense en route to a sixth-place finish good for a Europa League place.

Rulli is also rumored to want to come to Napoli, finding their history with Argentine players — namely Diego Maradona — to be very attractive to him. He would be a great investment for Napoli to make, and is not a player that they should allow to get away. His age, the potential price (probably landing around the €30 million mark, plus bonuses), and his ability make him a very good fit for Napoli going forward, and he looks like he has the makings to be a very strong goalkeeper of the future for them, if he gets signed.

Get this done, Napoli. You need this too much to let it slip by.