Sampdoria to land Real Madrid's Soldado in Cassano deal

Sampdoria are set to take Real Madrid striker Roberto Soldado on-loan as part of a deal struck for the permanent signing of Antonio Cassano.

Controcampo says Real have agreed to drop their asking price from £3.75 million to £2.5 million in exchange for Samp agreeing to take Soldado on-loan for next season. Real rate the player highly and are reluctant to lose the Spain international outright.

Meanwhile, Samp president Riccardo Garrone confirmed: "Cassano will remain with Samp, he is willing to make a big sacrifice over his wages."

"Antonio is a very sincere lad and straightforward. If he and his agent have listened to alternatives, then that's fine, it's part of the rules."