The Real Betis may be looking at another austere summer this year, with results collapsing in recent weeks. If Los Verdiblancos fail to qualify for Europe this season, their drop in revenue could force them to make a painful sale this summer.
The plan is to sell Nabil Fekir, who has two years left on his deal and a €20m release clause, AS Diary. Initially, they hoped for some interest from Saudi Arabia, but increasingly there are doubts about what kind of market Fekir has. Since returning from an anterior cruciate ligament injury, he has seen much less effective, and there are calls for the French international to be benched. In addition, finding a suitor to pay both his fee and match his salary of 8 million euros seems a tall task.
The alternative could be to sell Isco. Their star player this season, and recruited freely, has extended his agreement for another two years, but there have already been prepared to pay his release clause of 10 million euros that was active before his new agreement That said, Isco is happy in Sevilla, and only an “astronomical” offer from the Middle East could potentially sway his mind.
In recent summers, Manuel Pellegrini has lost key players such as Luiz Felipe, Alex Moreno and Sergio Canales, and there is certainly a fear that the need to balance the accounts could make European qualification too complicated. The emergence of Girona this year is certainly threatened, but next season again that prospect is very real if Isco leaves.
