Two massive stars in the Serie A could leave Italy this summer, Ronaldinho and Balotelli may not be the best players in the world, but they’re important for the league and it’s status. While Ronaldinho is 30 years old, he’s still got the magic, he still creates wonderful assists and is slowly scoring more goals for AC Milan. Balotelli on the other hand is the future of Italian football, a young Italian who is powerful, fast, and has flair and technique, a player with charisma and attitude who wants to be the best. If the Serie A were to lose these two players it loses two important pieces in its future, marketing, and flair.
There was a time when Ronaldinho was the player which lit up smiles on peoples faces, a player who played with joy and passion, full of skill and grace in his individual demolishment of teams. Back in his Barcelona days he singlehandedly spanked Real Madrid 3-0 with two fantastic goals. Ronaldinho still represents the joy and love for soccer, and when someone hears that a game has Ronaldinho in it, even if they’re not a soccer fan, they’ll probably watch it. Ronaldinho is an icon which draws people to the beautiful game, and hopefully to the Serie A, unless he were to leave.
Recently there’s been whispers that Ronaldinho wants to leave to return back to Brazil, he doesn’t want the MLS or another European team, he would only want to transfer back to his home-country. Flamengo would be the most probable club that Ronaldinho would go to, they just won the Brazilian championship, and after saying good-bye to Adriano who’s at Roma, they’re looking for a big name to keep the trophies coming. The president of Flamengo, Patricia Amorim has stated that Ronaldinho told her that he wants to join the Brazilian champions, and there’s even been talk of a verbal agreement between the player and the club. To pay Ronaldinho’s wages Flamengo would have to do what Santos did with Robinho, who have sponsors help pay the wages, and apparently there’s already a sponsor ready to pay Ronaldinho’s 10 million dollar a year contract.
Balotelli’s situation is a bit different, being a much younger player, plenty of clubs see him as a future Ronaldo, because of their similarity in physique and skills. The two main pursuers of Balotelli are Manchester United and Manchester City, and apparently the red half of Manchester are closer to the Italian’s signature. Real Madrid have surprisingly decided to pursue Balotelli also, Florentino Perez has apparently given Jose Mourinho a “U-23s only” policy for the signings, and so the Portuguese coach seems to have put Balotelli on his wishlist. Inter Milan would be receiving around 35-40 million Euros for Balotelli, but I can’t see how that would be enough for a player with so much potential.
Inter Milan have been criticized for their lack of Italians, so why give away probably the most promising young Italian player to your main competitors in European competition? Of course it’s useless to try and keep a player who wants to leave, but Balotelli has stated that he wants to continue to win trophies with Inter, and he has never said that he wants to leave. While 35 million Euros are very useful in this economic crisis, if Inter wait a couple of years, they could have a player worth maybe double that amount, if not more. Selling him seems the worst decision possible to me and I’d like to know what you think in the comments below.
So next season the Serie A could lose two of its most talented players, a move which I think won’t help anyone in Italy, club or league. Share your thoughts on these two players below by commenting!
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The lack of outrage or surprise in these comments is telling – I don’t think Serie A fans think they will miss either of these players!!
Ronaldinho might be staying as Milan are desperate to offload Huntelaar. They’re looking for buyers so they can sell him and then use the money to sign Podolski.
If Ronaldinho and Huntelaar are gone, the Podolski and Ibrahimovic are being considered.
Yep Robert, the reaction among AC Milan fans is that they’re realizing that they probably don’t need Ronaldinho anymore, and among Inter Milan fans it’s that maybe Balotelli is too much hassle, and he’s not even needed with Eto’o and Milito. But I certainly will miss both of these players if they leave…
And Rami, who will buy Huntelaar?I don’t think there’s a club willing to spend anything on him considering his recent bad form. But I feel very bad for him because he was never really given many chances, always put on as a late sub, or given little playing time. And AC Milan don’t have the money for Ibrahimovic, unless they offload more than just Ronaldinho and Huntelaar. I don’t know what to think about Podolski, terrible club season, great World Cup, a risk worth taking?
If I am owner or manager at a club, I certainly wouldn’t spend anything on Huntelaar but it seems there is interest from EPL clubs!
He’s failed with Milan, failed with Real Madrid but has just the success of the Dutch league to back him. I dont think he’d succeed in England but let’s see if some club buys him.
As for Ronaldinho, it’s looking like Milan will keep him. Who knows, there’s time still. Podolski might work for Milan.
The problem with Huntelaar is not only that he failed to distinguish himself during the season, but was non-existent during the World Cup, which could have raised his value. But some clubs are always looking for a big name – maybe a Chelsea or Bundesliga club would take him in hopes that he can still be an impact player.
And I agree Niccolo, I will miss Balotelli as well. But it looks like his situation has disintegrated to the point where he just can’t stay in Milan and needs a change of scenery to reach his potential. Unfortunately it doesn’t look like a Serie A club can or wants to pay for him, so it’s off to England.
I like Ronaldinho!!!