Papu Gomez has broken silence on the reason why he turned down a lucrative move to Saudi Professional League.
He said: “I decided to join Serie A side Monza also because of my family as I received a proposal from Saudi…”.
“For one thing, it wasn’t an unmissable offer, the kind that changes your life. Then when I looked for the city where I should have moved, in the middle of the desert, I thought: thanks, but I won’t take my three children there…“
Gomez added, “I didn’t want to take my children, my family to the middle of the desert so I decided to reject and return to Italy.”
Papu Gomez recently joined Italian Serie A side Monza as a free agent on 29 September 2023, after exiting La Liga side Sevilla.
Papu Gomez granted his first interview since he joined Monza as a free agent and revealed that he promised CEO Adriano Galliani that he will join the club.
Monza confirmed the signing of the World Cup-Winning Argentine playmaker last month after he terminated his contract with Sevilla.
In his interview with the press, the Argentine revealed he had several offers but ultimately chose Monza because of his family.
He also revealed that he had been waiting for an offer from Italy where he had previously spent nine-and-a-half years of his career.
Speaking on the deal, Papu Gomez said: “I have rejected many proposals from abroad because I was waiting for one from Italy. I feel at home in this country, which is important and I am happy.”
Papu Gomez also went on to add, “For me the Italian championship has always been among the top three in the world.”
Aside from his family, another factor that influenced his decision was the geographical location and proximity to Bergamo, which had been home to the Gomez family for a number of years.
Papu Gomez
Alejandro Darío Gómez, known as Papu Gómez, is an Argentine footballer who was born on 15 February, 1988 and plays as a forward, left winger or attacking midfielder for Monza and the Argentina national team.
The Argentine started his club career in his home country with Arsenal de Sarandí in 2005, before joining San Lorenzo in 2009.
He moved to Catania the following year and in 2013, he joined Ukrainian side Metalist Kharkiv, where he remained for a single season, before returning to Italy to play for Atalanta.
Papu Gomez set the Serie A record for most assists in a single season with sixteen, and was named to the Serie A Team of the Year in 2019/20.
Although he was born in Argentina, Gómez is a dual citizen of Argentina and Italy, having gained Italian citizenship on 14 May 2016.
Linda Raff And Gomez Family
Linda Raff is the wife of Monza and Argentine midfielder, Alejandro Gomez, and she was born on May 24, 1989 in Argentina
The pair have been dating since 2011 and tied the knot in a mega wedding ceremony in 2012.
Papu Gomez and Linda Raff have three children together, two sons and one daughter which they welcomed in 2012, 2015 and 2018 respectively.
