Reina praises 'extraordinary' Manchester United target Koulibaly

Aston Villa goalkeeper Pepe Reina has described Senegal defender Kalidou Koulibaly as the best defender he has played alongside at Napoli.

The two were teammates at Napoli for three seasons before Reina left for AC Milan. While he felt more comfortable having Koulibaly in front of him, Reina also feels the Senegal international's defensive partnership with Raul Albiol was “phenomenal” as they combined well to shield him.

“The defender who gave me more security? In a moment, Koulibaly was something extraordinary. In the national team [it was] Sergio Ramos,” said Koulibaly on Instagram Live as per TuttoMercatoWeb.

“At Liverpool [it was Daniel] Agger, [Jamie] Carragher. Difficult to choose, there have been many strong [players]. In recent years, the Koulibaly - Albiol combination was phenomenal if it was in place.”

The praise on Koulibaly might not be surprising as he is linked with a move to Manchester United and lately Newcastle are reported to have entered the race for his signature.

After six seasons at Napoli, Koulibaly could move away from Stadio San Paolo as interest in him continues to grow with the defender recently said to have turned down Paris Saint-Germain’s overtures.

The 28-year-old defender has also reportedly been on the radar of Manchester City.