Dries Mertens was overjoyed to see his former Napoli coach Maurizio Sarri and confirmed that no move to Lazio was on the horizon.
The 35-year-old Belgian forward ended a nine-year spell with the Partenopei in the summer, leaving on a free transfer. He was heavily linked with a move to the Biancocelesti but ultimately signed a one-year contract with Galatasaray, trying out a new adventure in Turkey. Mertens has scored two goals in 12 appearances for the Super Lig club.
Speaking first to Il Mattino (via La Lazio Siamo Noi), Mertens reflected on his summer and the possibility of joining a different club in Serie A.
I admit, there were talks with Salernitana. Iervolino understood that I wanted to keep the house in Naples and tried.
I have to say that the Granata were good to baste the dialogue and it would have been nice to go deeper but there was a big problem for me.
After the Azzurri, I never wanted to wear any other shirt in Serie A. It would have been strange, I didn’t feel like it.
The 35-year-old Belgian forward then spoke about Lazio and coach Sarri.
I’m happy here in Turkey. I was delighted to see coach Sarri, his staff and Hysaj again, but there is no chance of wearing the Lazio shirt this summer either.
During his nine years in the Campania capital, Mertens made 397 appearances across all competitions, scoring 148 goals and providing 90 assists. He became the club’s all-time top scorer and is still a fan favourite in the city.
