Lazio are making a serious effort to persuade Dries Mertens to join them. However, they will have to contend with Royal Antwerp, who also want to bring the attacker to his homeland.
Mertens is now scheduled to leave Napoli at the end of this month. This is because he and the club have not yet reached an agreement on a contract extension.
Maurizio Sarri, his former manager, has been in close communication with Mertens. However, Royal Antwerp are offering the 35-year-old an attractive salary and a two-year contract.
The Current Situation of Mertens
Napoli recently posted a video which showed Dries Mertens on their social media. Some fans have taken it to be a farewell of sorts, confirming his imminent departure. But Royal Antwerp president Paul Gheysens has refused to publicly comment on the matter so far.
It’s not true that we reached out to him despite the reports. He is good player and an excellent person. But he isn’t part of our plans at the moment. He’s been great in Italy. he has a nice home and he has gotten used to living there. I believe they will eventually strike a deal. I think that the farewell was a way to hide the negotiation.
Still, Napoli appears to have moved on from Mertens. It appears that they are looking to replace him with Giacomo Raspadori of Sassuolo. Speaking to Sky at an event, Sassuolo CEO Giovanni Carnevali said that he does not expect the attacker to leave.
We don’t need further exits. It’s complicated when a player desires to switch teams, but it’s still early. The Partenopei asked for him, and we will see what happens in the next few days. The window is long. We have received many requests, but we want to maintain the quality of our squad.
Napoli will hope that they can keep Mertens, or at least find a replacement quickly. The 2022/23 season is about to commence, and most teams would not like to part with their stars. Hence, a suitable deal may be difficult for Napoli.
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