THE prospects of Italian star Andrea Pirlo following in Alessandro Del Piero’s footsteps to the A-League appear to be vanishing after it was made clear that a package worth almost $10m would be required to secure the services of the decorated midfielder.
Courted by clubs in the MLS and the A-League, Pirlo is deciding on his future after Juventus lost the Champions League final to Barcelona last weekend.
Though he has a year left on his Juventus contract — and was outstanding in the club’s securing another Serie A league title this season — Pirlo has held open the prospect of a final move before retiring.
Prominent Australian agent Lou Sticca, who persuaded Del Piero to join Sydney FC in 2012 and has close links with Juventus, flew to Italy this week to hold talks with Pirlo’s management and try to sell the concept of moving to Australia.
Though it was said the dialogue was constructive, various suitors from around the world have also been in contact with Pirlo’s advisers- none yet knowing whether he intends to see out the final year of his Juve deal.
But it has been made clear that his salary expectations should he move are roughly double those that brought Del Piero here, which before tax — and with ancillary benefits including housing and travel — would inflate to nearly $10m.
Only Sydney FC and Melbourne City could realistically even consider such a sum, and neither seems likely to invest such an astronomical figure, even one still so influential among the European elite. Sydney brought the A-League to the world’s attention by securing Del Piero in the face of competition from teams including Liverpool, but have recalibrated their financial model since with a marquee budget believed to be around $1.5m.
0 comments:
Post a Comment