By Sulayman Bah
Serie A club Sampdoria has tightened its grip in their attempt to lure Gambian footballer Omar Colley.
Reports about the saga went cold last week appearing to suggest the Italians have pulled the plug off the move. However, the deal is in fact alive with Sampdoria still not relenting until they get their man.
The Serie A outfit last week Wednesday launched a second bid to prise away Omar Colley by making an improved offer to Belgian side Genk.
Samp slapped an initial offer said to be in the region of €5m, €4m short of the Belgian outfit’s €9m solid valuation of the left-sided defender. However, desperate to get a quick replacement for Slovakian defender Skiiniar who left to join Inter Milan, Sampdoria renewed their bid to secure the Gambian’s services and are now waiting on Genk chairman’s feedback.
The glamour of playing in the Serie A might be tempting bait in luring Omar but Sampdoria must fight off overtures from equally well-established rival clubs like French side Lille and Turkish Super Lig giants Fenerbache and Besiktas.
Lille and Fenerbache were reported to have held preliminary talks with Omar’s representatives and Genk coach Albert Stuivenberg over the defender’s availability.
But Sampdoria gazumped the negotiations lodging a bid little more than the initial €5m which they hope will be enough to break Colley’s club chairman’s resolve.
