Ailton in Qatar link
Schalke striker Ailton has been linked with a switch to Qatar.
Schalke's unsettled Brazilian striker Ailton could be set for a lucrative move to Qatar according to reports in the German media.Bild reports that Al Arabi, the former club of Gabriel Batistuta and Stefan Effenberg, are keen to bring the 31-year-old to Qatar and are ready to offer the Royal-Blues ‚é¼3.8 million for his services.
The pacey striker joined Schalke only 12 months ago on a free transfer from Werder Bremen and still has a year to run on his contract, but his future had been subject to speculation for some time with Ailton constantly claiming that he would like to leave Gelsenkirchen and continue his career elsewhere.
Schalke's financial director Josef Schnusenberg has recently revealed that the club is ready to sell the moody Brazilian in the summer.
"The player is on the market, although we will only sell him if we receive a good offer," stressed Schnusenberg.
With the ‚é¼3.8 million offer expected to meet Schalke's asking price, the decision of whether or not to see out his career with Al Arabi now belongs to Ailton, who is currently on holiday back in his native Brazil.
While Schalke have already raised ‚é¼4 million from the sale of young forward Mike Hanke to Bundesliga rivals Wolfsburg, Ailton's farewell would see Ralf Rangnick's team in dire need to strengthen their strike-force and press reports were quick to link the Royal-Blues with Stuttgart's Germany international Kevin Kuranyi.
