Pay-cut but no scrapped contract for Cassano

Antonio Cassano remains a Sampdoria player after an Italian league arbitration board ruled yesterday that his salary should be cut by 50 per cent, but that his contract could not be cancelled. Sampdoria had applied to have the controversial forward’s...

Antonio Cassano remains a Sampdoria player after an Italian league arbitration board ruled yesterday that his salary should be cut by 50 per cent, but that his contract could not be cancelled.

Sampdoria had applied to have the controversial forward’s contract unilaterally terminated for gross misconduct, but Cassano maintained that he wished to stay at the club.

He is reported to have seriously insulted club president Riccardo Garrone during an argument in late October and has been frozen out by the club ever since.

Cassano is set to rejoin Sampdoria’s first-team squad on January 1, but it is widely expected that he will be sold in the January transfer window.

League leaders Milan have reportedly shown an interest in signing him, with Italian press reports suggesting Milan’s Brazilian star Ronaldinho will be sold to the Los Angeles Galaxy to create a space in their squad.

Defending champions Inter and Juventus were also linked to Cassano, but both have since denied interest.

Cassano, 28, has 20 international caps and had looked set to become a first-choice player under new Italy coach Cesare Prandelli.

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.