La Liga champions Atletico Madrid have roped in Argentina and Udinese midfielder Rodrigo De Paul for €35 million. The 27-year-old will sign a 5-year contract until 2026.
Rodrigo De Paul has been one of the best performers in Serie A this season as he clinched 9 goals and 9 assists in 36 matches for Udinese this season. Although the Udinese side finished 14th on the Serie A table, Rodrigo impressive performance throughout the season earned him a move to the Spanish champions. De Paul is a versatile midfielder who can play both as an attacking and defensive midfielder both.
Rodrigo De Paul started his career at Racing Club in Argentina and played there for two years. In 2014, he was signed by the Spanish club Valencia CF but he failed to make his mark at the club and was loaned out by Valencia’s then-manager Gary Neville back to Racing Club in 2016. It was the same year when he signed for the Italian side Udinese and has consistently performed for the club. It will be Argentine’s second stint in Spain last 7 years.
Meanwhile, Atletico Madrid laid hands on the La Liga trophy for the first time in 7 years and dethroned their city rivals Real Madrid. According to the reports, Atletico Madrid’s midfielder Saul Niguez may leave this summer and has received many approaches from clubs across Europe.
Atletico Madrid are not the only side that was interested in the midfielder. Juventus, Inter, Milan, Napoli, Lazio, Roma, Leeds United and Liverpool were after signing Rodrigo. But Rodrigo’s compatriot and Atletico Madrid’s manager Diego Simeone had a huge role in convincing the player to join them.
Currently, Rodrigo earns €31,000 per week and £1.6 per year playing for Udinese. De Paul will earn €3.5 million per year which is more than double his salary at his former club.
The player is currently representing his national side at the Copa America in Brazil and is one of the regular starters at the team for the one-month long competition. Argentina qualified for the semi-finals of the tournament and will meet head-on with Columbia on 7th July at Estádio Nacional de Brasília in the capital city of Brazil.