HERNAN CRESPO cost Chelsea almost a £1million a
game after finally ending his time at Stamford Bridge yesterday.
The Argentine striker signed a £25m contract over five years after
a £16.8m move from Inter Milan in 2003.
But he was left on the sidelines for long periods by
former manager Jose Mourinho. Crespo was eventually farmed out on
loan to AC, helping them reach the 2005 Champions League final,
where they lost to Liverpool in a penalty shootout.
He has spent the last two seasons on loan with AC’s
arch-rivals Inter. He started only 33 Premier League matches in his
five years with the Blues and scored 25 goals in all
competitions.
That works out at almost a million a game, as the
Italian clubs paid around £2m each season towards his wages, while
each Chelsea goal cost around £1.3m.
Meanwhile Claude Makelele is ready to quit the Blues
after re-opening talks with French club Paris Saint-Germain. The
35-year-old midfielder was signed from Real Madrid in a £16.8m deal
five years ago. He had been expected to stay at Stamford Bridge
another season after he was offered a one-year extension to his
current £70,000-a-week deal. But the Frenchman, who will become a
free agent in 2009, wants a longer contract and PSG are prepared to
offer him two years.
Makelele, who won the Champions League with Real, had
discussions with PSG boss Paul Le Guen earlier this week and is now
considering their offer. Le Guen said: “I have spoken again to the
player to tell him that, like last year, we have the intention to
make him come to Paris.”
