Money no bar in wooing Drogba, says Al Wasl

Dubai: Money is no issue to Al Wasl in the chase for Didier Drogba, according to a club source, countering claims made by Wasl’s former CEO Ashraf Ahmad Mohammad.

Al Wasl are said to be locked in “serious talks” with the former Chelsea and Ivory Coast striker, aged 34, who is also linked with China’s Shanghai Shenua, who have offered him £300,000 a week (Dh1.69 million).

Mohammad told the media: “Drogba is asking for €10 million [Dh45.7m], the offer he has is €10 million in China, who will pay that? They cannot pay for local players, but they will pay for Drogba?”

An Al Wasl source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Gulf News: “There’s been definite interest in Drogba from the club since the end of April, which means they know how much he costs and are prepared to pay that figure.

No negative feedback

“Al Wasl’s interest isn’t just for exposure — we don’t need that. Drogba is a free agent looking to go abroad and he knows Dubai. There has been a lot of interest from other clubs and just like any other club, Wasl has made contact and there has been no negative feedback. Who is in pole position to land his signature nobody knows — only the player can answer this.”

The source added: “The former CEO has no information on these negotiations and as such can’t comment. No one can really say if Wasl can or can’t afford Drogba. The decision to release funds or not can only be made by the club’s owner and knowledge of the budget is only complete once support from other parties is established.”

One unnamed local agent threw cold water on the deal however. He said: “It’s very, very unlikely, it’s paper talk to be honest. We enquired recently and he wanted €10 million net over £200,000 a week. Al Ain wouldn’t pay that, let alone Al Wasl.

Meanwhile, Diego Maradona said: “Who in the world would not want a player like Drogba? Every team would love to have such a player in their ranks, but it is too early to talk about him at Al Wasl. Let us see how things go.”