Why Richarlison snubbed AC Milan and Man Utd in favour of Watford
Calciomercato.com exclusively reported in the summer that both European giants had been scouting the talented Brazilian striker in South America but the Hornets managed to seal the player’s services from Fluminense for € 12 million.
With three goals scored in the opening eight appearances in the Premier League, Richarlison is justifying his price-tag and both the Red Devils and the Rossoneri may regret to have missed out on the 20-year-old.
Richarlison snubbed moves to Manchester and Milan in order to join the Hornets and Watford’s boss Marco Silva explained English media that he played a vital role in persuading the Brazilian star to move to Watford in the summer.
"During June, he was in competition in Brazil and in Austria we watched Fluminense and analysed the player – we decided then to talk with our board to see whether we could buy the player. He's not cheap, but at that moment you needed to be assertive. He could have adapted fast, like he has, but it could've been the opposite. We analysed the player and I said to the board we needed to buy him.
"After that, I made some contact with him and when I knew he was ready to travel to sign with Ajax, I tried to stop everything. I think he was [going to] play on a Saturday and then go there on Monday. I said that I believed in him and that he could come and help us, and he has."