Although Icardi is not a regular starter, he is usually an important alternative when Victor Osimhen is unavailable, a situation that repeated itself during the Africa Cup of Nations and reinforced the decision to keep him. Trained at Sampdoria, Icardi had his most prominent stage at Inter Milan, before moving to Paris Saint-Germain and subsequently consolidating himself at Galatasaray, where he has spent four seasons. Beyond the impact that his arrival in Rio de Janeiro would have represented, Fluminense's interest was reduced to an initial intention that did not find conditions to prosper. In strictly sporting terms, the forward maintains efficient numbers despite his secondary role: in the current European season, he played 28 matches, averaging 48 minutes per game, in which he scored 10 goals and provided two assists. Furthermore, he is in the last six months of his contract, although he has offers to continue his career in European football starting in the second half of the year, which completely ruled out any chance of a landing in Brazilian football. The confirmation of Lucas Paquetá's arrival at Flamengo led Fluminense to analyze alternatives to shake up the transfer market and mitigate the symbolic impact generated by their classic rival. In this context, the name of Mauro Icardi emerged, a figure of international weight that quickly sparked excitement among fans, although the possibility did not go beyond the exploratory plane, as learned by Noticias Argentinas Agency. The 'tricolor' leadership made only an informal inquiry at the beginning of January, but soon understood that advancing for the Argentine forward was unviable. The main obstacle was economic: Icardi earns an annual salary close to 12 million dollars at Galatasaray, a figure completely out of reach for Fluminense's financial structure, unless there is a drastic reduction by the footballer. To this difficulty was added the position of the Turkish club, which showed no interest in parting with the forward during the current season.
