Pepe Mel has admitted that Real Betis have “zero chance” of signing Dani Osvaldo, despite the former Espanyol striker’s unattached status.
The 29-year-old is currently a free agent after being released by Southampton, just two years into a €15.1m transfer, having spent three loan spells at Juventus, Inter and Boca Juniors during that time.
“He has zero chance of arriving. We’d be beating around the bush [if we tried],” Coach Pepe Mel told AS.
“I know that the lad has made efforts to play for Betis, but even then he’d still be unattainable for us.
“With Osvaldo, we can’t afford to spend our entire budget on him because then the [other] gaps [in the squad] will be left as they are.
“The money must be distributed for all positions we need [to reinforce].”
Mel also expressed his confidence that Spain Under-19 champion Dani Ceballos would remain a Betis player come September 1, despite mounting speculation with Real Madrid.
“I assume Dani will still be here for the League match against Villarreal,” he added.
“He’s a strong lad and all the speculation won’t have affected him. He’s more concerned about passing his driving test.”