He had been one of AS Saint-Etienne’s lucky charms during the second half of the season. Loaned in January by Augsburg, Irvin Cardona had brought a new lease of life to the Greens’ attack, scoring no fewer than 10 goals in 22 matches, some of which were as beautiful as they were decisive.
Unsurprisingly, the Forez leaders are pushing hard this summer to try to get the former Monaco and Brest player back, but things are particularly stuck at the salary level. The 26-year-old striker earns around €130,000 gross per month in Germany, a sum that is difficult for ASSE to reach.
Cardona close to Espanyol?
However, Augsburg would be very inclined to loan Cardona again, after having considered using him this season in the Bundesliga. The problem for Saint-Etienne is that other European clubs have invited themselves into this file. Espanyol Barcelona would have thus begun negotiations with the German club, and the discussions would be well advanced according to L’Equipe.
For Saint-Etienne, it is a hard blow. The Greens will probably have to turn to other avenues to strengthen their attack, having already welcomed Zuriko Davitashvili and Augustine Boakye, in addition to defender Yunis Abdelhamid.
