Francesco Totti is not happy with Higuain’s transfer to Juventus.
Juventus have officially signed Argentine striker Gonzalo Higuain from Serie A rivals Napoli after triggering the €90 million release clause in his contract. The 28-year-old has become the third most expensive player in the world, but leaves behind thousands of shattered Neapolitans who hailed him as their footballing hero.
Roma legend Francesco Totti, who has spent 24 years at the club, has made some comments on the big transfer. The 39-year-old Roman captain lamented that football has become more about money than passion.
“The sport has changed a lot,” said the Italy legend in an interview with Gazzetta dello Sport.
“Now at the centre is money. Players change teams more often, perhaps to make more money. It’s more a business than a passion.
“Fans go to the stadium to have fun and see a player who is always on the same team – they expect not to be betrayed.
“Look at what has happened now with Higuain from Napoli to Juventus. It’s a disaster.”
The 39-year-old added that it was now commonplace for foreigners playing in Italy to move to other clubs to make more money, unlike Napoli’s greatest Argentine hero Diego Maradona.
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The transfer of Higuain will have a massive ripple ffect on the Serie A next season. Juventus have already weakened Totti’s Roma with the transfer of 26-year-old Bosnian midfielder Miralem Pjanic, and have now done so with their primary Scudetto rivals this past season. Higuain had been one of the leading lights for I Partenopei as they battled Juve for the Serie A title, scoring 36 league goals for them. He is almost irreplaceable.
I Bianconeri have also made several notable acquisitions from abroad. They have signed Barcelona right-back Dani Alves and also snapped up Moroccan center-back Medhi Benatia from Bayern Munich.
The strategic weakening of their title rivals, plus the defensive reinforcements, make Juventus very strong contenders for the Serie A title next season. With the kind of additions they have made, the reigning champions will also be a team to look out for in the Champions League, where they will look to improve upon their finals appearance in 2014-15.
For Napoli and Roma it is now a matter of finding replacements for Higuain and Pjanic, as they hope to overcome the odds against Juve next season.
