Dries Mertens is going to extend his expiring contract with Napoli, reports la Gazzetta dello Sport† The 34-year-old attacker did not immediately say yes when his employer proposed to hand in more than two-thirds of his salary, but Mertens still agrees. This is how the former PSV player will probably see his big dream – to conclude his career at Napoli – come true.
Mertens currently stands for 4.5 million euros excluding 1 million euros in bonuses on the payroll at Napoli, which has to cut back due to financial problems. The club’s all-time top scorer i Partenopei can only stay for an annual salary of 1.5 million euros. Mertens and his wife Katrin Kerkhofs made the decision to stay in Italy. The couple has fallen in love with Naples for the past nine years and has not yet wanted to leave. Last month the son of Mertens and Kerkhofs was given the Italian name Ciro Romeo.
Aurelio De Laurentiis straightened out the negotiations with Mertens this week. According to the Italian sports newspaper, the flamboyant Napoli chairman visited Mertens at home and convinced him to sign a new, presumably last, commitment in Naples. Recently, Luciano Spalletti already gave his approval. “When the president asked me for my opinion on Mertens, I told him we should keep him,” said the Napoli coach.
Mertens left PSV for Napoli in the summer of 2013 and became a club icon. Last Sunday, the attacker scored his 146th goal in his 393rd game in the Azzurri, which has left the competition far behind. Marek Hamsík has 121 goals, Lorenzo Insigne scored 119 and Diego Maradona scored 115 goals for the club.
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