It wasn’t how it wanted to be but Dries Mertens had to end his nine-year stay in Naples this summer. The Belgian had the will to continue his career at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium and all he asked from the club to stay was a new contract under the same, old conditions. However, Aurelio de Laurentiis did not want to indulge one of the legends of the club’s recent history, offered him a significantly lower salary and thus forced him to leave Naples and look for a new job.##EDITORS_CHOICE##And just one day after saying goodbye to the fans and the entire city with a very emotional message, Mertens got an opportunity in an even bigger, more ambitious environment. The Belgian striker was approached by no less than Juventus. And not only did Juve contact the 35-year-old footballer, but they were very specific, offering him a contract for two seasons, claims Gianluca di Marzio.However, the love and loyalty to the city and the club that he spoke about in his farewell message, Mertens showed in action and thanked the Old Lady for the offer, explaining that he does not want to strengthen any of Napoli’s direct rivals, assures Di Marzio.Non è un addio, è un arrivederci 💙 pic.twitter.com/osnXUaLBQr— Dries Mertens (@dries_mertens14) August 3, 2022 It was another apparently failed attempt by Juventus to provide Dusan Vlahovic with attacking support, having so far struggled to bring Alvaro Morata back from Atletico Madrid. And what can be said about Dries Mertens’ move, except – hat’s off! Especially if it is known that the best scorer in the history of Napoli currently only has an offer from Galatasaray. Previously, it was speculated that Antwerp also had the idea of returning him to his homeland, however, it is nowhere near as attractive as a move to one of the biggest clubs on ‘the Boot’. Anyway, nothing will come of it.##NAJAVA_MECA_6548711##In addition to Mertens, the leaders of Juventus have contacted Filip Kostic’s agent in the past few days. Even though Angel di Maria came, Massimiliano Allegri asked for another reinforcement in the wing positions, and the choice fell on the Serbian footballer. However, West Ham also want Eintracht’s best player, and the management of the Turin club will talk with Kostić’s entourage tomorrow to find out if there is a chance to beat the competition and get the Serbian assist maker.
