Vasco were interested in signing Romelu Lukaku | OneFootball

Vasco considered signing striker Romelu Lukaku during the current transfer window. The 33-year-old Belgian came onto the radar of the Rio de Janeiro club’s board as the team’s major attacking signing of the season. Information gathered by Lance! indicates that the player belonged to Napoli, of Italy, which set its demands to negotiate the professional.

The Italian club set the amount at 5 million euros (approximately R$ 29.7 million at the current exchange rate) to release the striker on a permanent deal. The football leadership at São Januário saw the Belgian player’s name as a move with enormous media and sporting impact, capable of mobilizing the fans upon the player’s arrival in Rio de Janeiro.

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Vasco cited financial reasons for backing away from the deal

Despite technical approval, the financial feasibility analysis slowed the progress of the talks on the part of Vasco’s executives. Vasco’s board weighed that the amount demanded for the player’s economic rights was high for a 33-year-old player, an investment profile with no prospect of financial return in a future sale.

The combined total of wages and signing bonus would increase the football department’s payroll. The total cost would make the operation too burdensome for the coffers of the São Januário club, making the purchase unfeasible under the terms requested by the Italians.

The striker’s final destination in the European market

With no progress in talks with the Brazilian team, Romelu Lukaku agreed to join Fenerbahçe, of Turkey.

The move to Turkish football sealed the Belgian striker’s departure from Italian football and ended any possibility of an agreement with Vasco in this window.

Lukaku is leaving Napoli — Photo: Luca Amedeo Bizzarri/Getty Images

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This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.