😥 Napoli confirm Dries Mertens exit after nine years | OneFootball

Napoli have officially said goodbye to Belgian forward Dries Mertens.

The 35-year-old forward leaves the club after nine years in Naples, during which time he became a local hero.

Mertens is the club’s highest ever goalscorer with a total of 148 during his time at the club and has made the fifth-highest number of appearances for Napoli with 397.

The Belgian’s best-ever season was under Maurizio Sarri, when he fired in 28 goals in 2016/17.

Club president Aurelio De Laurentiis had hoped to negotiate a one-year extension with the forward, but the player’s wage demands were deemed too high.

“I feel the love for the club, but I must never forget that football is also an industry as well as pure passion,” the owner told Radio Kiss Kiss Napoli.

“Unfortunately, that means sometimes going against what the fans want. When a supporter tells me, why don’t you keep Mertens, I can only reply that Mertens offered himself to us for another year, because he knows that he’s 35 and then has to retire.

“If he makes it a matter of cold, hard cash too, then I have to say no. If I have to pay a disproportionate salary to Mertens, that would take money away from the budget of next season, when it will be needed to sign younger players.”

With Lorenzo Insigne and Kalidou Koulibaly having already left the club, it’s the end of an era for Napoli’s fans.