Samu Omorodion (20 years old) is a force of nature and at the start of the season is so impressive in Porto, a team he joined in the summer transferred for him Atléticoas with the U-21 National Teamwhich is getting too small. This Tuesday, he single-handedly overcame Malta with an insulting physical display and four goals, three of which were scored in nine minutes. Some may wonder why the forward is enjoying and making people enjoy in Portugal and not with the Atleti shirt.
The red and white club He signed him in 2023 after making an impact with Granada. He paid the six million euros of his clause and loaned him to Alavés, where he stood out (nine goals and one assist in 36 games). Because of his youth and his projection, The fans predicted a place for him in Simeone’s plans. It wasn’t like that. And it can be strange. But, like everything that seems strange, there is always some explanation behind it. And in this case there are two ways. On the one hand, the already known reasons alleged by the footballer. And on the other, an unknown message that Omorodion sent to Simeone and the club on June 28 in which he asked to leave “under fair conditions” to, if possible, fulfill his dream of playing in the Premier. Later, with the relationship entrenched for different reasons and after a distancing occurred, he ended up ending up in Porto.
His wish began to materialize on May 29, when he broke up with his until then representative Juanma López and he also ends all relationships with Enrique Rosado, from the Niágara Sur representation agency, to go with a “trusted person in his family.” This was made public by the forward himself. The new agent would be Ismael Bailón. Until andnthen Atleti had faith in its continuity. In fact, he rejected an offer from West Ham of 29 million euros plus 10 in variables. The message from the Metropolitano was blunt in mid-June: “Samu stays here.” The young forward had a clause of 80 million euros and Chelsea, after three offers that were close to 50 million, were not able to tie him down. Until that message making his wishes clear – and surely other things – changed the pace.
Simeone only wants soldiers on his team who kill for the cause. And there were phrases in that message that, for the Argentine, were going to prevent the relationship from getting back on track: “At this moment in my career, I do not consider that staying at the club is the best option.” “I pray that they allow my departure to other teams.” “The Premier is my big dream.” That convinced the sports management not to continue in the group dynamic and to allow, while he found a team that truly made him happy, Atlético would set its sights on other strikers like Julián Álvarez.
That request, through a brief text sent by whatsapp, It didn’t sit well either with the entity or, of course, with the coach, that he did not count on him in preseason, claiming that it was what the striker himself wanted. Even the player worked alone, as he confirmed this week: “At Atlético I trained apart. I didn’t feel like a participant, not like a footballer. I trained and my head told me no. I had a bad time. Many nights crying… my family and my mother had a very bad time…” That led to a departure that was initially going to be to Chelsea, although some things did not suit the international and he began to look elsewhere with better eyes, but His final departure did not occur until August 24. And he went to Portugal. President André Villas-Boas, who came to travel in person to Madrid to close the operation, and Andoni Zubizarreta, who is the club’s current sports director, decided to pay 15 million euros for 50% of the rights (you will have two non-mandatory purchase options). He signed for five seasons, until 2029, and has a clause of 100 million euros.
The great feeling
In Portugal he is triumphing (seven goals in seven games) and every time he dresses up for the Spanish National Team he makes a difference. After his poker against Malta, with which he put more pressure on De la Fuente for the future, the question was in the air. Why did Atlético not measure well and let a player escape with so many goals? “They are the ones who decide. If they didn’t want me it’s because maybe they thought I didn’t have enough level.. There is no plan to talk about it either. They know what they did and I am calm. I will never lie, neither Cholo nor anyone from the board spoke to me, only Carlos Bucero“, declared the player in The Great Game by Cope. However, sources from the athletic club assure that Gustavo López, Andrea Berta and, above all, the new Director of Football Carlos Bucero, had several contacts with him with the utmost respect.
Be that as it may, the footballer was not at all happy with the treatment received this summer, while various sources consulted at Atlético assure that “they have a clear conscience.” That message, Apart from Simeone, it reached CEO Miguel Ángel Gil Marín and, at least, several other members of the sports management. Some didn’t understand anything. And others tried to empathize with him. But what is clear is that that step on June 28 blew everything up.
