Re: ⚽ Lega Serie A 🇮🇹 (Italian League) Prediction Thread 2025/2026 ⚽
I just read the news that our best striker from last season has just agreed to a contract with a team in the Saudi Pro League. Mateo Retegui is leaving Atalanta to play for Al Qadsiah in Saudi Arabia for a fee of €67 million, another record transfer for Atalanta. Mateo, on the other hand, will earn €20 million per season.
It's become impossible to compete with the Arab teams. Unfortunately, they have incredible spending power, and no Italian team, nor even a European one, I believe, can compete with them.
https://www.sportmediaset.mediaset.it/mercato/atalanta/retegui-al-qadsiah-67-milioni-cessione-record-per-l-atalanta_100840347-202502k.shtml
It's become impossible to compete with the Arab teams. Unfortunately, they have incredible spending power, and no Italian team, nor even a European one, I believe, can compete with them.
https://www.sportmediaset.mediaset.it/mercato/atalanta/retegui-al-qadsiah-67-milioni-cessione-record-per-l-atalanta_100840347-202502k.shtml
He chose money then. We are talking about nearly 7 times his current salary. It is a really big amount of money. Not every player is doing the same thing with him on the other hand. We can give an example from the same league, Osimhen.
He makes around €13m a year and he got an offer by Al-Hilal which was like 4 times his salary. But he refused it anyway. Because he wants to stay in Europe and play in the Champions League instead.
Let's be honest! Who would offer such a high contract to a mediocre player like Retegui?
Honestly, no one, and he knows it too! He accepted a monstrous offer that he knows he'll never get again, so he did the right thing by accepting it. He's going to have this enchanting experience. And then he will return to desperately search for a club ready to invest in him.
I would have made the same choice as him!