Q7 won’t play for Beşiktaş: chairman

ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News

Once beloved by Beşiktaş fans, Ricardo Quaresma (2R), nicknamed Q7, has been left out of the squad after refusing to take a pay-cut and failing to find another team. Hürriyet photo

Beşiktaş Chairman Fikret Orman has ruled out the possibility of Ricardo Quaresma’s returning to the squad, saying the Portuguese winger would not for Beşiktaş anymore.

The superstar winger will not be accepted on the first team, Orman said in an interview on the NTV Spor television channel on Oct. 10

“For us, the Quaresma saga is over,” Orman said. “This is the final year of his contract. We will honor the deal, but he will not be making this kind of contract in Europe if he just jogs for one year.”

Cash-strapped Beşiktaş has been asking Quaresma to accept a pay cut from his yearly salary of 3.75 million or find another club. Two weeks ago, his agent announced that Quaresma had accepted a cut of 750,000 euros, and would join the team’s training camp in Antalya, but he was again left off the first team after changing his mind.

“Quaresma had approached [board member] Tamer Kıran and said he would accept a pay cut, but this week he says he wants 3.75 million again,” Orman said. “This is not child’s play. Beşiktaş had done everything it can for him, but there will be no more Quaresma at the club. I will not let this happen.”

Beşiktaş has been trying to offload its wage bill, and has parted ways with players such as Simao Sabrosa, Egemen Korkmaz and Fabian Ernst since last summer. The club has been asking Quaresma to either accept a pay cut or find another club. However, Beşiktaş failed to find another club interested in the Portuguese star, and Coach Samet Aybaba has not been using him until the issue is resolved, making Quaresma an extremely expensive substitute.

“Quaresma is Beşiktaş’s highest-paid player, and he is getting his money on time in accordance with his contract,” Orman said. “[Midfielder] Veli Kavlak is getting one-tenth of Quaresma’s wages. Some players have not been paid since last season, and if [Beşiktaş] continues to pay one player all of his wages, then we can’t be a team.”