Spanish left-back Jose Angel, higher referred to as Cote, has revealed in a latest interview that FC Barcelona tried to signal him in 2011, throughout Pep Guardiola’s golden period.
The 2010/11 season marked a serious turning level in Cote’s profession, as his performances for Sporting de Gijon attracted curiosity from a number of prime European golf equipment, together with the reigning European champions on the time.
Barcelona, recent off successful the UEFA Champions League title, have been available in the market for reinforcements.
Cote was recognized as a robust candidate to strengthen the left flank. Nevertheless, the deal by no means materialised, and greater than a decade later, the defender has now defined why.
Disagreement over fee phrases
Talking on the BarberClab YouTube channel (h/t SPORT), the 35-year-old revealed that the proposed transfer collapsed as a result of monetary disagreements between Barcelona and Sporting.
Jose Angel was needed by Barcelona. (Photograph by Jasper Juinen/Getty Pictures)
“I didn’t go to Barça as a result of Sporting requested for an quantity and Barcelona needed to pay it in instalments. Sporting, nevertheless, needed the total payment upfront,” Cote defined.
He additional revealed that Barcelona had recommended including performance-based clauses, resembling additional funds if the workforce received La Liga or the Champions League.
From Sporting’s perspective, these phrases added uncertainty. “Sporting have been considering—what if Barça don’t win something?” he stated.
Regardless of the failed transfer, Cote made it clear that he would have signed for Barça with out hesitation had the 2 golf equipment agreed on phrases. “I might have gone to Barcelona. It was an important workforce,” he acknowledged.
Ultimately, Sporting accepted a suggestion from AS Roma price €4.5 million, greater than double Barça’s €2 million plus variables proposal. At Roma, Cote labored beneath a younger Luis Enrique, who was simply starting his managerial journey.
Though the Barcelona chapter by no means opened for Cote, his profession took him throughout a number of golf equipment in Spain and Italy, abandoning a legacy of consistency and professionalism.
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