KAA Gent CEO Michel Rouwagie believes Gift Orbán is already worth more than 10 times what the club paid for his services in January.
Stabek received €3.3 million from Ghent nine months ago before allowing Orbán to leave Norway for Belgium.
The Nigerian striker quickly broke through, scoring with incredible regularity in the Belgian professional league and in European competitions.
Orban was a target of several clubs over the summer, with Tottenham Hotspur and Fulham reportedly also fans of Orban.
Gento, not wanting to let Orban go cheap, demanded a transfer fee of 30 million euros for the 21-year-old.
In the end, no club met Gent’s financial demands for Orban, and with the transfer window closed, Orban will remain with the Belgian team at least until the winter.
There are rumors that Orbán did not leave because Gent wanted €30 million for a striker who would cost a fraction of that amount.
However, Ghent CEO Louwagie is unimpressed by such talk, believing he would have been paid more if the Dutch side had wanted to use Orbán.
In an interview with Nieuwsblad, when asked whether 30 million euros was a lot of money for Orbán, Louwagie said: Why do Ajax and PSV sell a player like Anthony for 95 million and so many others for 40 million to 50 million?
“And why should we think 30 million is too much when the competition here is at least as good?” Look at how Dutch clubs are doing in Europe.
“But we are the Flemings, jealous of each other’s plates. Everyone demands a higher price and instead of helping Belgian football progress. No, rather capital injection – in Belgium 500 million in the last five years – and subsequent lawsuits.
“This really has to stop. Dutch clubs only had a $1 million deficit in the 2021-2022 season, while we had a $150 million deficit. We are making up the difference by selling at
Orban has scored 26 goals and provided 2 assists in just 31 games in all competitions for Gent.
