Staying ahead of the market is a recognized specialty of the Pozzo house.
The clubs that in the past saw indisputable talents stolen from Udinese know this, as do the Bianconeri who have established themselves in Friuli, enjoy a good market, and who at a certain point in their career are called to renew their contracts with the club that launched them into big football.
The example is fitting for Walace, who on Thursday accepted a two-year extension until June 2026, an extension which on the one hand rewards the rapidly rising midfielder and on the other will allow Udinese to consolidate a strong position in any outgoing negotiation.
Walace, in practice, accepted what Rodrigo Becao has been refusing since the beginning of October, when Gino Pozzo offered him a renewal with the current deadline set for June 2024, with an economic adjustment of the current 657,000 euros (source Salarysport.com).
Among the big names expiring in 2024, together with Gerard Deulofeu, Marco Silvestri and Isaac Success, Becao is the player with the most transfer market, as demonstrated by the recent interest from Everton, Tottenham and Inter, and perhaps it is precisely because of the tempting offers already received in summer that the Salvador de Bahia defender, who will soon turn 27 on January 19, did not sign the renewal, a refusal that came a few days before the flexor injury that knocked out the defender last October 16.
Who knows, maybe Becao fears that an extension with Udinese could hinder his desire to compete elsewhere from next season, thinking that the club can then shoot high on his card.
Or Becao simply awaits a promise to sell with an agreement on the amount to bring into the black and white coffers (15 or 20 million?) to then have freedom of choice regarding the best offers, which is what Albert Botines tried to do in the summer , Gerard Deulofeu’s agent, when he negotiated with Napoli, without finding the amount requested by the Pozzos.
This will probably be the most viable path for Becao, assisted by the prosecutors of Antoniu’s Assessoria Esportiva but who also counts on the work of Luciano Ramalho, the agent who is also Gino Pozzo’s trusted man when it comes to South American operations, who has already appeared at Udine at the end of October. It will be Ramalho, who already acted as intermediary in 2019 in the negotiation that brought Becao to Friuli, to negotiate the amount with the Pozzos, and it is probable that once found, the signature on the renewal will be reached.
All this, remembering that Udinese will owe 15 percent of the defender’s future sale to Esporte Clube Bahia, the team that I “launch” Rodrigo.