Abu Dhabi: Bani Yas have secured their third foreign signing for the new season by snapping up Algerian striker Ishak Belfodil following his exit from bankrupt Italian side Parma.
The Abu Dhabi-based Arabian Gulf League club on Tuesday agreed a two-year deal with the 6ft 3.5in hitman, even though the 23-year-old only has nine senior goals in his six-year career so far.
The only times Belfodil, who began his career with French side Lyon, has registered on the scoresheet have been with Parma in two separate spells. While he has netted twice in 12 appearances for Algeria since first being capped in 2013, spells at Bologna and Livorno (both on loan) and Inter Milan proved fruitless.
So Bani Yas will be hoping Belfodil can find his finishing touch alongside their expected chief source of goals, the club’s new Argentinian striker Joaquin Larrivey.
He joined the club last week from Celta Vigo, following the arrival earlier in the summer of Australian defensive midfielder Mark Milligan.
The Sky Blues had been expected to land ADO Den Haag’s Michiel Kramer, the giant frontman even travelling to Abu Dhabi on July 6 to undergo medical tests. But the deal fell through last week and Larrivey arrived instead.
Meanwhile, doubts surround the future of Spanish playmaker Joan Verdu, who is expected to leave the club to make room for a final overseas signing.
Belfodil, who has joined his new teammates on their pre-season training camp in Valencia, Spain, revealed his delight at having left Parma in an interview with the Italian website Tuttomercatoweb.
“It’s better for me and the club. It means a lot to me to be leaving Parma, as all the positive things I did in Italy were here,” he said.
“I arrived aged 20 with so much hunger and got on well with [coach] Roberto Donadoni. I went to Inter and Livorno, but was pleased to come back.”
Nobody at Parma has been paid since July 2014 and in March the club was put into administration, before finally going bankrupt after finishing bottom of Serie A. A new club has now been formed and they will start life in Serie D.
The Algerian added: “I knew from the start that there were difficulties. We were having team meetings before the season had even started.
“I didn’t leave in January because there was the African Cup of Nations, so it wasn’t easy for me to find the move I wanted.
“I terminated my contract because I still had three years left with a high wage. As a free agent, I hope to have a few more advantages finding a new club. Now I could stay in Italy or go abroad, as long as it’s a good opportunity.”
Belfodil had a parting message for the Parma fans.
He said: “The fans are giving us a big hand. There is a great sense of solidarity between the players and fans who always followed us.
“Donadoni never gave in and deserves so much praise. So many other coaches would’ve already quit.
“Nobody can explain what happened to Parma. It’s strange that such a thing could happen at a Serie A club, especially one with such a glorious history.
“It is strange that the club had over 100 players on their books and nobody noticed anything strange. Maybe the system is at fault too, but hopefully Parma can help change some laws.”
