Ex-Liverpool star Luis Alberto has reportedly asked Serie A club Lazio for an improved contract amid interest from La Liga giants Barcelona in the winter transfer window. The Spaniard has been sensational for the Italian club ever since joining them back in the summer of 2016 from English side Liverpool, after failing to notch down a starting berth.
Alberto began his youth career at Sevilla but as a promising youngster Barcelona soon snapped him up on loan and the youngster made 38 appearances for Barcelona B scoring 11 times. However, then Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers made Alberto one of his prime signings back in 2013 in a £6.8m deal from Sevilla. But the emergence of young Englishman Raheem Sterling and Brazilian play-maker Philippe Coutinho kept Alberto out of the first team and therefore Alberto was sent back to Spain for loan spells with Malaga and Deportivo until eventually making a permanent move to Lazio at the Stadio Olimpico Stadium in 2016 for €4m.
Alberto had a rather slow life in his debut season in Italy as he notched up five assists and a goal in just eight starts for his new club. But last season was where the Spaniard really grew tremendously as a footballer and scored 12 goals notching up 17 assists across all competitions in the process. These contributions from the Spanish maestro helped Lazio reach 5th place on the Serie A table and he attracted interest from several top clubs across the European continent and even La Liga champions Barcelona were keen on his services. Even the Catalonian club’s Spanish rivals Sevilla are monitoring Alberto’s situation.
Alberto is now interested in remaining at the Stadio Olimpico as Lazio will prepare an improved offer for the 25-year-old superstar. His presence in midfield and outings in the league proved that Lazio could earn a sturdy amount of profit from his sale as Barcelona were looking to spend over €25m to lure Alberto to the Camp Nou. Alberto could have earned as much as €3.5m a year if he agreed to join Barcelona but with Lazio rejecting any advances for their gem midfielder as they have no intention of letting him leave.
Along with Napoli stars Sergej Milinkovic Savic and Ciro Immobile, who are also on the list of Europe’s elite clubs in the next summer transfer window, Albero is prepared to pen a contract extension with Lazio which would keep him at the club until the summer of 2022. Alberto’s agent Alvaro Torres will be will be sitting down with the board and representatives from Napoli in the upcoming weeks to discuss a possible contract extension for the future.
I think that Milinkovic Savic and Immobile were immense with their outings for Napoli last season and Luis Alberto was also a key member in attack for the Italian giants. I doubt that Alberto will remain at Napoli as there will be plenty of clubs interested in his services, who will eventually look to add him to their squad. It’s just a matter of time for him now.
