Huge news from Ligue 1. La Sexta—a seemingly
reliable Spanish television station—reported Thursday night that Ramadal Falcao,
the highly sought-after striker from Athletico Madrid, has agreed to terms on a
€60 million move to Monaco (per 101 great goals).
This, after months of rumours suggesting that the
27-year-old Colombian was being courted by English sides Manchester United and
Chelsea, among others.
We'll continue to monitor the wires, but this would
be huge news if it is to be believed.
Falcao has scored 27 goals in 32 La Liga matches
this season for Atleti and a total of 53 since arriving from Porto in the
summer of 2011.
But the expectation for months has been that Falcao
would be moving to a larger European side.
As much as Monaco seems like an odd destination,
there are several reasons it would make sense.
First, though "Les Rouge et Blanc" have
struggled in recent years, falling into Ligue 2 in 2011, they have earned
promotion back into Ligue 1 for next season.
Second, they have a very wealthy owner
in Russian Dmitry Rybolovlev, who will likely spare no expense in bringing
the club back to credibility.
Finally, La Sexta suggests that Falcao's contract at
Monaco would pay him €10 million a season. And with Monaco's tax rate,
that's a whole lot of euros remaining in his pockets.
