De Rossi leads the way as top earner in Italy.
Following a study by La Gazzetta dello Sport, it is claimed that the total wage bill in Serie A has fallen under €1bn for the first time in three years.
The figures were released by the pink paper in Monday’s edition, as they not only listed each club’s salary bill per annum, but also announced the top earners in Italy according to their study.
It is further evidence of how the financial crisis that has gripped Europe over the past few years has effected Italy’s top flight, as the top clubs have generally made a conscious effort to reduce their wage bill which has seen the total fall to €912m.
While Juventus lead the way at €115m gross per year, their rivals have all re-negotiated deals with various players and trimmed their squads to facilitate the introduction of UEFA’s financial fair play regulations.
AC Milan are second on the list at €105m, while city rivals Inter Milan complete the top three at €95m. Most impressive is the level at which the likes of Napoli and Fiorentina operate, with the duo hopeful of challenging for the Scudetto this season.
Napoli owner Aurelio De Laurentiis has often been lauded for the way he has run the Partenopei, and with a wage bill at €74.1m, they will hope to exploit their commercial deals in order to increase profits at the club.
Similarly, despite signing the likes of Giuseppe Rossi and Mario Gomez over the past six months, Fiorentina have been able to keep their salary level at a manageable total.
The Viola currently spend just €60.5m on wages, and following on from their fourth-placed finish last season they will be expected to see that figure rise to match their ambitions as they aim for the Champions League this year.
Gazzetta also released their speculative list of which players are the top earners in Serie A, with Roma midfielder Daniele De Rossi leading the way with €6.5m net.
This is believed to have been a factor in the club’s decisions to sell the likes of Pablo Osvaldo and Erik Lamela this summer, as well as attempting to balance the books having signed a number of new players for coach Rudi Garcia.
The Italian international is followed by Gonzalo Higuain (€5.5m) and Diego Milito (€5m) to make up the top three. Esteban Cambiasso, Carlos Tevez and Francesco Totti all earn €4.5m with Mario Gomez closely following them on €4.25m.
That top group is then followed by Gianluigi Buffon, Mario Balotelli, Kaka, Philippe Mexes and surprise inclusion Marco Borriello, who all earn €4m.
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