Italy international Mateo Retegui hints AC Milan made an approach this summer, but Al Qadsiah ‘were the team that wanted me the most.’
The striker was flying high last term as Capocannoniere of Serie A with Atalanta and first choice centre-forward for Italy.
It was therefore somewhat surprising when he opted to make the move to the Saudi Pro League, even if La Dea pocketed a huge €67m plus bonuses fee for the transfer.
There were reports that Milan had shown strong interest too, so Retegui was asked about this by Al Arabiya television.
Retegui targeted by Milan and Al Qadsiah
“There were several clubs who were interested, but the negotiations were not successful, whereas Al Qadsiah were the most concrete and the team that wanted me the most,” explained the striker.
It has been suggested that the Italian Football Federation were unhappy with Retegui’s decision to move to the Saudi Pro League, feeling it might weaken his development.
Did he speak to Roberto Mancini, who in turn had left the Italy job to take over as manager of Saudi Arabia, before choosing?
“No, I didn’t talk to Mancini about it. I talked to my friend Fernandez, who was my teammate at Tigre, and coach Michel convinced me too.
“With all due respect to Gabriele Gravina and the Federation, I have a good rapport with them and they can have their opinion, but I don’t want to talk about this, as my comments might be distorted.”
Although he was born and raised in Argentina, Retegui was approached to represent the Italy squad thanks to his heritage.
“I didn’t want to wait too long for the call from Scaloni, which never did arrive. So when Mancini called instead, I immediately accepted.”