For eight years, Ciro Immobile shaped Lazio Rome’s sporting performance like no other player – as a goalscorer and captain. However, his many goals didn’t stop the Biancocelesti fans from ultimately breaking up the sporting marriage
Ciro Immobile’s career has had its ups and downs. The striker, who once turned professional at Juventus Turin in 2009, got bogged down when he moved to Borussia Dortmund in 2014 – and never got beyond the status of a hopeful during his Squadra Azzurra years. 17 goals in 57 international appearances for Italy have always earned him more criticism than praise during this time.
After his short loan spell at Sevilla FC (2015 to 2016), Immobile, who scored nine times in 13 Bundesliga games, made the right decision. His move to Lazio Roma at the time turned out to be an absolute stroke of luck for both parties. Over time, the Napoli-born player went from BVB misunderstanding to “king of the bombers” and, according to club statements at the time, extended his contract in 2020 “for life” until 2025 (and later again until 2026).
During this time, Immobile repaid the trust with 169 goals in 270 Serie A games for the Biancocelesti and, with his outstanding 2019/20 season (36 goals in 37 league games), was crowned not only the Serie A captain, but also Europe’s most successful goalscorer with the Golden Shoe.
Besiktas don’t have to spend much on Immobile
However, the relationship between Lazio fans and the Italian 2021 European champion and 2019 cup winner broke down during the most recent season, with the professional allegedly spinning intrigues against former coach Maurizio Sarri. During this time, Immobile was even “verbally and physically” attacked in public in front of his four-year-old son’s pre-school
His departure from Lazio had already been a topic of discussion at the time – and has now become final: Turkish first division side Besiktas bought Immobile out of the last two years of his contract and signed the attacker with immediate effect. Immobile arrived at Istanbul airport by private jet on Saturday night and was greeted by BJK vice-president Hüseyin Yücel and a number of Besiktas fans. Yücel thanked Immobile for his insistence on a transfer: “Thanks to the sacrifices made by Ciro, we completed the transfer in a difficult 48-hour period.”
Besiktas then announced the exact details of the transfer over the course of Saturday. Immobile signed a two-year contract with the Black Eagles until June 2026, which will earn him six million euros per year. According to Sky Sport Italia, Immobile is switching sides for just three million euros instead of the ten million euros reportedly demanded by the capital city side, and the player is also said to have waived his salary
