Luciano Spalletti confirmed yesterday that Dries Mertens has left Napoli, forcing the Belgian to find a new home after nine years in Campania.
The 35-year-old’s contract expired with the Partenopei at the start of this month and despite his wishes, no acceptable contract renewal arrived. Things started on April 26, when president Aurelio De Laurentiis visited Mertens at his home to discuss a new contract. Back then, things were positive and both parties were confident of moving forward together.
As highlighted by Calciomercato.com, things were ultimately not that simple in Naples; Mertens asked for a deal worth around €5m net – split between salary, signing bonus and agent commissions. De Laurentiis wasn’t happy with this and counter-offered a deal worth €2.5m net, which was quickly rejected.
Napoli are now looking ahead to the future, leaving Mertens to find a new home despite his desire to continue playing in the shadow of Vesuvius.
The Belgian has no shortage of suitors and a number of clubs have emerged for him over the last few weeks including Lazio, Royal Antwerp and Olympique Marseille.