‘Catastrophe’: Report says club must sell stars with £27m striker top of list & Leeds interested
Spanish outlet Golsmedia has delivered a fascinating update on the reason behind Valencia listening to offers for striker Rodrigo, amid interest from Leeds United.
They claim that the Spanish club is in a cash crisis they describe as a “catastrophe”, that has come about through a double of not qualifying for Europe and the Coronavirus crisis.
Three players have already been sold – Ferran Torres to Man City, and Francis Coquelin and Dani Parejo to Villarreal.
The report says this isn’t enough and that Valencia must “keep selling”.
Three players on high salaries have been earmarked for exits and they include Rodrigo.
The report says that Valencia would be willing to take what they paid for him after failed transfers around the £53m mark.
They paid £27m for the player in 2015 but the report claims that deal also included £8.8m in add-ons on top.
Sky Sports journalist Gianluca DiMarzio broke news of Leeds’ interest on Thursday, saying Andrea Radrizzani wanted him in time for the game against Liverpool.
Big-money deal
Valencia are a high-profile victim of the Coronavirus outbreak and their own terrible season.
AS claimed recently that they didn’t even have the money to pay their players and that could have an impact on the Rodrigo move.
There’s no doubt he would be expensive. A fee of £27m is a lot but not outside of the Leeds’ budget after they tabled £34.1 for Jonathan David.
However, you have to think about the future resale value of a 29-year-old forward.
Add his wages into the equation and you’re looking at a signing that would normally reside in the upper echelons of the Premier League.
He’s on a reported £118,000-a-week at Valencia and is their second-highest paid player. That’s another £6m-a-year on top of the fee.
That’s a total of £45m for a three-year deal for a striker who, while a Spain international, isn’t a prolific goal-scorer.
He’s under contract until 2022 but the Valencia situation could change things. If no one else is interested then the fee could drop to help with the wages, or Rodrigo could decide to take a drop to play at a Premier League club who he knows will pay his salary.
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