Juve sign Higuain for Serie A record fee from Napoli

Italian champions agreed to pay €90 million for Argentine striker, who scored 36 league goals last season

MILAN: Argentine international Gonzalo Higuain completed a sensational move to Juventus after the Italian champions agreed to pay a €90 million fee, the third highest in history, to wrest the highly rated striker from Napoli on Tuesday.

In what is the biggest ever transfer fee recorded between two Serie A clubs, Higuain's move to Turin on a five-year deal was confirmed by Juventus two hours after being published by Serie A league bosses on their official website.

In a statement, the Italian giants said: "Juventus Football Club announces the definitive purchase of Gonzalo Gerardo Higuain for the sum of €90 million, payable over two equal instalments in 2016/2017 and 2017/2018.

"Higuain will sign a five-year deal with the club."

Napoli had earlier slapped a 94.7 million buyout clause on the 28-year-old’s contract after he scored record 36 goals in the last league campaign, and also broke Gunnar Nordahl's 66-year record of 35 goals in a single Serie A season for AC Milan back in 1950.

After weeks of talks, Juventus negotiated nearly €5 million off the club’s asking price to capture the French born Argentine striker, whom they believe can make the difference between success and failure in the Champions League next season.

It is the third highest transfer fee in history after Gareth Bale's move from Tottenham to Real Madrid for €100.8 million in 2013 and Cristiano Ronaldo's 2009 move from Manchester United to the Spanish giants for €94 million in 2009.

Higuain also becomes the most expensive South American player in history, his transfer pipping the 86.2m euros Barcelona paid to Santos for Brazilian starlet Neymar in 2013.

A short statement by Napoli said: "Napoli would like to confirm that Juventus has triggered the buyout clause for the acquisition of the player Gonzalo Higuain."

Higuain, who will undergo a medical on Wednesday, will be expected to partner fellow Argentina striker Paulo Dybala, who in his maiden season with Juventus was their top scorer with 19 league goals, when the club return from their pre-season tour of Australia.

Napoli, who finished runners-up to Juventus to secure their place in next season's Champions League, are now in the hunt for a top striker.

Inter Milan's Mauro Icardi is top of their shopping list, although reports from the Netherlands on Tuesday said Ajax were set to sell Polish international striker Arkadiusz Milik to the southern club for a fee thought to be in excess of 35m euros.

Higuain's arrival in Turin, meanwhile, will add fresh impetus to their ambition of winning the Champions League.

Juventus reached the final in 2015 only to be outclassed in a 3-1 defeat in Berlin to Barcelona.