Atalanta Star Retegui Poised for Al-Qadsiah Switch | OneFootball

After a few tries, Al-Qadsiah have managed to lure a Serie A star to Saudi Arabia, as they have reached an agreement with Atalanta and Mateo Retegui. They almost landed Paulo Dybala last year, while they had been courting Moise Kean before pivoting.

According to La Repubblica, La Dea will cash in €67M plus add-ons. The former capocannoniere will pocket €16M plus €3M potential bonuses until 2028, with an option. It’s a massive pay bump for the player, who’s making about €2M, and plusvalenza for Nerazzurri, which paid €25M to sign him from Genoa last summer. He bagged 28 goals and provided 9 assists in 38 matches in his lone season in Bergamo.

The father of Retegui, Carlos, admitted it was impossible to turn down the offer from Al-Qadsiah, and the striker’s decision eventually convinced Atalanta to cave, as he wasn’t for sale.

New Italy coach Gennaro Gattuso won’t snub him because of the move to the Middle East. He’ll compete with Kean, Lorenzo Lucca, and Gianluca Scamacca during the World Cup qualifiers.

Our Take on Retegui Leaving Atalanta to Join Al-Qadsiah

It’s hard to pass up that kind of money, more for him than for the club. While profitable beyond every rosiest expectation, it’s still a bittersweet piece of business for the Orobici since, among their top players, he was the best bet to stay, if anything, because he’s been at the club for such a short amount of time. They might have to rethink their plans and keep somebody who would be happier to leave, which is never great. On the other hand, the deal sets an extremely high bar concerning the offers that could entice them to part ways with other cornerstones.