Contract Problems in Turin

By: Martha | October 2nd, 2007

Toro RULES. Both Turin clubs are locked in difficult contract negotiations right now with arguably their biggest stars, with both Alessandro Rosina and Alex Del Piero apparently wanting a whole lot more money than their clubs are offering.

Del Piero’s contract expires at the end of the season, but he and Juventus have been far apart on his wages since this summer, and the latest reports don’t offer any sign that things have changed. In fact, for the first time, the Juve suits are dispensing with that whole sanguineness thing, and are finally acknowledging that Del Piero could leave the club this summer. While this is mostly like just another negotiation tactic and Juve’s way of drawing a hard line with Del Piero and his brother/agent (odd, given how quickly they caved when Pavel Nedved and David Trezeguet started bitching about their deals), there’s a slight chance that the club really won’t resign their captain and Supreme Leader unless he accepts a reduction in salary. (And, if things don’t work out, Shaktar are supposedly ready with a €2 million/year offer that would allow Ale to move to Ukraine and share Cristiano Lucarelli’s personal chef for a couple years.)

Across town, meanwhile, things are getting decidedly ugly in the negotiations to keep Rosinaldo at Torino. It’s understood that the most skilled bulldog on earth is demanding a buyout clause in any new contract contract, thus allowing him to leave whenever a high-roller appears on the horizon (read: soon), despite the fact that he’s already signed through 2009. In addition, Rosina (understandably) wants a dramatic increase in salary: He currently earns just €300,000/season, and is rumored to be asking for as much as €1.2/season before he signs a new deal. Needless to say, it would be incredibly difficult for Toro to afford a wage that high, and clubs are lining up to take the Azzurrini star off their hands as early as this Christmas, if negotiations don’t work out. Some talks took place with Roma over the summer and they’re supposedly still interested, but Milan are the new name most closely associated with a bid, while Inter, Fiorentina, Benfica and Olympique Marseille are also waiting in the wings.