Former Atletico Madrid forward Nikola Kalinic has signed a deal until the summer on a weekly wage of just €1. The 35-year-old Croatian scored 15 goals in 42 games for his national team, and looks set to play out his career for boyhood club Hajduk Split.
Kalinic had been out of the game for the past six months, after spending a year at Hadjuk, where he scored 4 times in 20 appearances. With Hajduk searching for a striker in the winter transfer window, and Kalinic was only too happy return. According to Diario AS, the contract will be worth just €1 per week – his agent commented that it is ‘the easiest deal I’ve ever negotiated’. It is not quite clear how it adheres to the minimum wage rules of €840 per month in Croatia.
He joined Atletico Madrid from Milan for €14.5m in 2018, and did not have the most successful spell in Spain. During his single season at the Metropolitano, he scored 4 goals and gave an assist in 24 appearances. Promptly loaned out to Roma the following summer, Kalinic would leave Atletico permanently for Hellas Verona in a €1.8m deal in 2020.
Image via Miroslav Lelas/PIXSELL