NICO WOULD BE THE BEST PAID OF THE STAFF
Athletic Club's offer to Nico Williams to 'shield' him from a future 'threat' from Barça
Published:20/08/2024 - 19:16h
Updated:20/08/2024 - 19:36h
Athletic Club intends to improve Nico Williams' contract once his stay at the entity is confirmed. The people from Bilbao would extend their relationship, increase their salary and increase their termination clause
Nico Williams was one of the great protagonists of the transfer market. The footballer was very close to joining FC Barcelona, but various factors ended up changing his mind and, although no possibility is 100% ruled out until the end of the summer window, everything indicates that he will continue under Ernesto Valverde next season. Once his continuity is confirmed, Athletic Club will launch its plan to 'shield' him for the future.
According to what was reported in the newspaper 'ElCorreo', the San Mamés offices intend to improve the winger's current contract. The people of Bilbao want to reward the Navarrese's loyalty and will offer him an agreement worthy of his star status. Thus, the Euro Cup champion will become the highest paid player in the squad, and will see his termination clause increased, in a clear message to the rest of the clubs interested in his services, including the Barça entity.
The youngest Williams extended his contract less than a year ago until 2027, but now, with his sporting and media explosion, the lions intend to extend his agreement until 2030 along with a significant salary increase. In this way, the Navarrese could surpass his brother Iñaki as the player with the highest salary for the Basque team, surpassing the more than 11 million gross euros received by the forward of the Ghanaian team.
Likewise, Nico's starting price will also increase. Currently, his termination clause is valued at 58 million euros, but Athletic Club wishes, in principle, to double it. In this way, once he signs his new contract, any team that tries to incorporate the footballer into its ranks must deposit the 100 million euros stipulated in his renewed contract.
The clause that would facilitate his exit
Despite all this, in Bilbao they understand that, in the future, it is likely that Williams will decide to change scene to try new challenges. Therefore, there is a possibility that this new agreement includes a regressive clause, which would mean that its termination clause could decrease over the years. With this formula, the Basque entity would facilitate its exit in the future, since in the coming years its exit cost would once again be around the current 60 million euros. In this way, Barça could have options to incorporate him in the future, although it remains to be seen if not signing him this summer permanently closes the doors of the Spotify Camp Nou.
