OFFICIAL: Mario Rui joins AS Roma
Mario Rui, 25, spent the last three seasons at Empoli and has joined the giallorossi for a fee of € 9 million.
Here’s the statement published on AS Roma official website:
The club has agreed terms with Empoli FC for the player to join the club on loan until 30 June 2017.
Roma will pay Empoli a fixed fee of €3 million, rising by upto €1.5m in performance-related bonuses. The agreement includes a performance-related clause which, if triggered, will mean Roma must make the deal permanent by the start of the 2017-18 season for a fee of €6m.
“I’ve joined one of the best clubs in the world so I’m feeling great," Mario Rui said. "The first impressions are very positive. I hope to contribute and help the team to build on the work they did last season."
The Portuguese left-back cut his teeth in the youth academies of Sporting Lisbon, Valencia and Benfica before making his professional debut with Fatima in 2010. Brought to Italy by Parma in 2011, he subsequently had loan spells at Gubbio and Spezia before joining Empoli in 2013. The 25-year-old helped Empoli earn promotion from Serie B in his first year, going on to make 96 appearances in total for the Tuscan club - 70 of which were in Serie A.
