Recent history tells us that if Valencia manage to develop a star, he isn’t going to stay for very long. The case of Roberto Soldado might be very similar, with the Spanish striker getting a lot of interest from Liverpool and Tottenham in the Premier League, while Napoli from the Serie A are also in the hunt for the player.
According to his club president, Amadeo Salvo, Los Che are willing to enter negotiations for their captain, who allegedly has a release clause worth £18 million, but there’s a catch, or at least a restriction. Valencia don’t want to be caught without a starting striker too close to the beginning of the season, so have declared August 3 to be the deadline for making a deal. If Soldado isn’t transferred by then, they’ll be less receptive towards offers.
Of course, if there is a release clause (which every player in the La Liga has), there isn’t much Valencia can do if it’s matches. However, no teams, including those making the signing, wants to bring over players so close to the beginning of the season, leaving the new arrival out of any preseason activity.
Tottenahm and Liverpool seem to be tied at the hip for the last 13 months when it comes to chasing players, always going after the same ones. Usually, Tottenham are the team that win that head-to-head clash, although Liverpool have been doing quite well in the Spanish market with Aspas and Luis Alberto this summer.
However, they won’t be making an offer for Soldado unless they feel Suarez is slipping out of their fingers, something that might be decided in the next few days in Australia. For Spurs, a striker for next season is a must after adding Paulinho and Nacer Chadli this offseason so far, and Soldado, with 88 league goals in 161 matches over the past five seasons, would make a serious upgrade to their strikeforce.
But don’t forget about Napoli, who have been linked with Gonzalo Higuain as well, and have already made signings worth €42 million this summer – Raul Albio, Callejon, Dries Mertens, Rafael and others. They need a striker, however, and don’t be surprised if they end up being the team that wins in the race for the 28-year old.