Andrea Belotti, once one of Europe's most sought-after strikers, is now a free agent. The Italy international, who had a €100m (£87m) release clause during his Torino days, attracted interest from Manchester United, Arsenal, and Chelsea. However, his career has since declined significantly.
Rise to prominence at Torino
Belotti made his Serie A debut at 20 with Palermo before moving to Torino in 2015, where he flourished. In 2016/17, he scored a career-best 26 league goals, narrowly missing the Capocannoniere award to Edin Dzeko. Midway through that season, he signed a contract extension with a €100m release clause, applicable only to clubs outside Italy.
Torino president Urbano Cairo expressed concerns that the clause might not deter Premier League interest. "When I included a €100million release clause in Belotti's contract somebody thought it was an excessive fee, now they think it's not enough," Cairo told Tuttosport in 2017. "I think nobody will come here to trigger his release clause and it would be better for him to stay for one more season at Torino."
Struggles and decline
Belotti scored four times in World Cup qualifying but failed to score in the play-off loss to Sweden, which kept Italy out of the 2018 tournament. Despite the speculation, he stayed at Torino, later admitting he didn't feel he was worth the clause. "To be honest, no [I don't feel I am worth it]," Belotti told Mediaset in April 2017. "But given the way the transfer market has developed, increasingly ridiculous sums are being spent."
He continued to score regularly, hitting double figures in each of his first six Torino seasons and winning Euro 2020 with Italy. When he left in 2022, he had exactly 100 league goals for the club.
Since then, his career has faltered. He failed to score a league goal in his first season at Roma and has managed only 22 goals in over 140 appearances across four clubs in Italy and Portugal. Now 32, he spent last season at Cagliari but made just eight appearances after a serious knee injury. Reports in Italy suggest he was set to rejoin Cagliari but failed a medical. He hasn't played for Italy since June 2022.
