Torino president Urbano Cairo has warned Arsenal and Chelsea that striker Andrea Belotti’s price-tag is rising as the season goes on.
The Italian international took his tally for the season up to 22 goals after bagging a quick-fire hat-trick in Torino’s win over Palermo on Sunday, and he has now scored 24 in 27 in all competitions.
In turn, as he continues to impress on the pitch, it will only make him more valuable and Cairo has insisted that he intends on getting as much as he’s worth with his current contract having a €100m release clause in it.
“If you think back to when we inserted that clause, €100m seemed a crazy figure, but today it seems too low,” he told Sky Sport Italia, as quoted by La Gazzetta dello Sport. “If I were to do the clause now, I would put it at €150m. Just compare him to the goals Lionel Messi has scored, yet Belotti is younger so he’s worth more.”
The 23-year-old is rapidly establishing himself as one of the top marksman in Europe with his performances, and it’s only natural that he’ll outgrow Torino and want to move on if the club can’t match his ambitions and talent with a stronger squad.
Based on what Cairo continues to say, he intends on cashing in on Belotti at some point, but when and for how much is still up for debate.
As noted by the Metro, both Arsenal and Chelsea have been credited with an interest in the striker, with the former even putting in a bid for him as per speculation in January.
However, it seems as though if either of the Premier League giants have genuine aspirations of taking Belotti to London, they’ll have to spend a lot of money. It’s up for debate whether or not it’s worth it, but based on what we’ve seen thus far and how much more improvement he can make, he could be a prolific goalscorer for years to come.