Colón settle Neris deal, Motta: "A blow to River’s finances" | OneFootball

In an exclusive interview with Darío Pignata on Radio Gol 96.7, the former president of River Plate of Uruguay, Fabián Motta, analyzed the complex web behind the transfer of José Pablo Neris to Colón. Motta, who led the Uruguayan club during the sale process, broke down everything from the financial details of the deal to his deep bewilderment over the striker’s recent decision to declare himself a free agent after appearing at the Santa Fe club’s facilities with a notary.

Saralegui’s Request and the Transfer Engineering

The arrival of the Uruguayan striker at Sabalero was not a random gamble, but a specific request from then-head coach Marcelo Saralegui. Motta recalled that, although the relationship between the two clubs was already positive following Mauro Da Luz’s previous transfer, the deal for Neris was on a much larger scale, involving an investment of around $800,000 for 65% of the player’s rights. On this point, the former president explained that the negotiation was complex: “It was up to me, at Saralegui’s request, to handle Neris’s transfer. At first, the relationship was a bit tense, but later, with Víctor Godano, we sorted everything out… we ended up with a very good transaction, collecting everything we were owed.”

The Contrast Between the Vignatti and Godano Administrations

A key point in the conversation was the difference in payment compliance depending on who was in charge at Colón. Motta did not hide the fact that during José Vignatti’s presidency there were severe complications due to Argentina’s economic and currency instability, noting that “with Vignatti at the time, with all the issues regarding the dollar, payments were delayed quite a bit and for us it was a complication.” However, he emphasized that the situation changed dramatically with the current management taking over, detailing that “with Godano, what we set up was a payment plan, and they even left one of the installments as a guarantee in case of any delay; that guarantee was only executed on the last installment, so everything we agreed upon was strictly fulfilled.”

Bewilderment Over Legal Action and the Role of Agents

The current point of greatest tension is Neris’s decision to consider himself a free agent due to an alleged lack of sporting consideration. Motta, familiar with the player’s career, was extremely surprised by this move to declare himself in rebellion, stating that “it surprised me because these are not normal attitudes that usually happen… with the good year José had at Montevideo Torque, I think there was a chance for him to either stay at Colón or secure a transfer abroad that could have benefited us all.” Likewise, the executive warned that this legal conflict represents a direct loss for River of Uruguay, which still holds 35% of the player’s economic rights. In this regard, he was blunt in saying that “River owns part of those rights and that’s also a blow to the club’s finances, but more than anything, the attitude—I don’t know if it’s so much the player or the agent—surprised me in how things were being handled.”

Finally, regarding who is behind the player’s moves, Motta clarified that representation is no longer directly handled by Francisco “Paco” Casal, but by his close associates, mentioning that “after Paco stepped back a bit from representation, Sorondo and Taborda remained, and the two of them are now handling the player transfers.”

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