Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis has revealed that Arsenal and Atletico Madrid made offers for Gonzalo Higuain before he ultimately left to join rivals Juventus in the summer.
In an interview with the London Evening Standard, the Partenopei supremo revealed the interest shown from other clubs in Higuain, who netted 36 times in the league last season.
“We received a request from Arsenal, and I also received a request from Atletico Madrid but they didn’t put enough money on the table.
Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis has revealed that Arsenal and Atletico Madrid made offers for Gonzalo Higuain before he ultimately left to join rivals Juventus in the summer.
In an interview with the London Evening Standard, the Partenopei supremo revealed the interest shown from other clubs in Higuain, who netted 36 times in the league last season.
“We received a request from Arsenal, and I also received a request from Atletico Madrid but they didn’t put enough money on the table.
“We were not ready to sell him – for me Higuain was not for sale.”
Juventus would ultimately meet his €90m buyout clause, but De Laurentiis had previously already offered him a new contract, which Higuain had turned down.
“One year earlier I offered another five year contract to Higuain and his brother. ‘I will offer to you x’. It was more money than what he is getting right now from Juventus.”
De Laurentiis was then asked about Arkadiusz Milik, the man who has replaced Higuain in Napoli’s strike force.
“Arkadiusz is a fighter, he’s fantastic . Now people say that Gonzalo Higuain is on a different planet, but I remember that when he arrived in Naples, not all were convinced.
“He did not always play at Real Madrid and for the Argentine national side because he made some mistakes.
“Now they say he is on another planet, and within two years they will say the same of Milik."