Italian journalist Raffaele Auriemma has told Radio CRC (via gonfialarete.com) that Napoli forward Dries Mertens will sign a new contract with the Italian club after the side rejected a €30m offer from West Ham.
The Mediaset Premium sport reporter has been told that Mertens’ wife has been convinced to stay in Naples, prompting the Belgian star to remain with Napoli and agree to a new deal.
He also says that the player is within hours of signing a contract worth €4million a year, but it seems there is still an avenue for the player to leave the Serie A club with a release clause for foreign clubs set at €25million. Auriemma said:
“For Mertens’s signature it is really a matter of hours. The agreement is based on 4 million euro, and the clause will be 25 million euros only for foreign countries. It was the Belgian attacker’s wife who convinced him to stay in Naples… Napoli has rejected an offer from West Ham for 30 million euro for the Belgian, and he will continue as part of the coach [Maurizio Sarri’s] project.”
Mertens has been in excellent goalscoring form since switching from his more natural position as a winger to playing as a striker. This season, the 29 year old has scored 28 goals in 42 games in all competitions for Napoli.
