SOCCER
Barcelona captain Sergio Busquets rejects huge Al Nassr offer
Spanish international midfielder Sergio Busquets has reportedly snubbed an offer to join former Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo at Al Nassr.
Reports in Catalonia claim that Barcelona captain Sergio Busquets has turned down a huge contract offer from Saudi Arabian club Al Nassr to join them when his contract at Camp Nou expires on 30 June this year. Unless you’ve been living on the moon, you’ll be aware that the Saudi Pro League outfit are paying Cristiano Ronaldo a small fortune to turn out for them and they aren’t ready to stop there, with Eden Hazard and Sergio Ramos among other names linked.
How much were Al Nassr reportedly willing to pay Sergio Busquets?
Catalunya Radio have reported that Busquets was targeted and even offered a contract of €20 million per season – less than a third of what Ronaldo earns in terms of his playing salary – but the 34-year-old has opted to decline Al Nassr’s advances. Barça head coach Xavi Hernández would like the midfielder to renew his contract, which could still happen, while MLS club Inter Miami, owned by former Real Madrid star David Beckham, are said to be interested in taking the player to the States but haven’t yet made an approach.
Busquets has been criticised in some quarters over the last couple of years for a perceived lack of mobility, which has been amplified by the club’s struggles in all areas of the field, and indeed in the boardroom. However, he has also shown than when the team is well set up around him, he can still be an incredibly influential player for La Blaugrana, as was the case in their Spanish Super Cup final victory over Madrid on Sunday.
Despite his advancing years, Busquets has started 12 of Barcelona’s 15 league matches this season, playing the full 90 minutes on seven occasions. He was named in the starting line-up in four of their six Champions League group games but only played one full match as Barça failed to progress to the knockout stages.
How many trophies has Busquets won with Barcelona?
Busquets made his first-team debut for Barcelona in September 2008 and has played a total of 701 games for the club in all competitions, scoring 18 goals. In that time, he has won 31 trophies at Camp Nou, including eight league titles and three Champions Leagues.