Gonzalo Higuain joins Juventus after 90 million euros clause met
The Argentine striker Gonzalo Higuain is now a Juventus player.
The former Real Madrid man, who has spent the last three seasons at Napoli, completed his move to the 'Old Lady' of Italian football on Tuesday, after the Serie A champions deposited his release fee of 90 million euros in the league's offices.
In recent days, the figure of the clause was reported as 94.7 million euros. This was true in the event that the player himself deposited the buy-out amount.
For another club to make the payment, rather than the player, the clause dropped to 90 million euros.
Higuain was top scorer in Italy in the last campaign, with 36 goals in 35 games, and becomes the third most costly footballer in history, behind Wales' Gareth Bale, who left Tottenham for Real Madrid for 101 million euros, and Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo, who also joined 'Los Blancos', from Manchester United, for 94 million euros.
The agreement between the Argentine forward and Juventus was an open secret and it was even revealed that the player had undergone a medical in a private Madrid clinic last week.
Diego Maradona, an idol at the Neapolitan outfit, also showed his disgust at the player's departure, but blamed his former club's directors.
Along with having a greater chance of winning silverware with Juve (at Napoli, he won one Coppa Italia and one Italian Super Cup in three seasons), Higuain will enjoy a substantial wage rise.
He will receive 7.5 million euros per season, and has signed a five-year contract.
His deal at Napoli was worth 5.5 million euros annually.
