Napoli have missed out on the signing of Argentine ace Tomas Costa after he snubbed their advances to join Porto.
Talented midfielder Costa had looked likely to wear the Vesuviani shirt next term when talks with Napoli President Aurelio De Laurentiis and sporting director Pierpaolo Marino were successful.
But just as it seemed that the Stadio San Paolo outfit were going to lure another South American ace to add to Ezequiel Lavezzi and Walter Gargano who signed last summer, Portuguese champions Porto swooped to steal Costa’s services.
The Dragons are expected to pay around £2.5m to Costa’s club Rosario Central and the 23-year-old will earn around £500,000 per season for five years.
Napoli will now go back to the drawing board as they look to strengthen their squad for a UEFA Cup qualification push next term.
