Exclusive: Why Napoli will not stretch to 45m offer for Ndoye

Originally posted on Football Italia | Last updated Jul 25, 2025 5:57 PM ET

Dan Ndoye is top of Antonio Conte’s wish list, but Napoli also have no intention of paying €45m to Bologna, which is why Raheem Sterling and Kevin have been on the radar too.

There are absolutely no doubts that Ndoye is the one that Conte would gladly add to his squad, but we also need to clarify a few things in the light of reports regarding some ‘phantom’ proposals that Napoli simply are not going to present.

We are referring to the rumoured €45m including add-ons, plus a percentage of the sell-on fee, which is not part of the plan at all.

Napoli have a limit for Ndoye budget

As things stand, Napoli can reach €40m in total, perhaps with something extra, but won’t reach those figures.

They will continue to track Ndoye, knowing that the striker prefers them above other options, but are not prepared to get into an all-out bidding war with Nottingham Forest.

There are alternatives, as Kevin was offered by intermediaries without genuine negotiations direct with Shakhtar Donetsk, while there has been dialogue with Chelsea for Sterling.

However, Napoli are waiting to see what happens with Ndoye first before making the decision on whether to change direction.

This article first appeared on Football Italia and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: