Football club Zeta, Montenegro’s inaugural champion and currently a member of the lowest tier of domestic football, will benefit from the transfer of Nikola Krstović from Lecce to Atalanta, netting over six hundred thousand euros (approximately 625).

Krstović represented the club from Trešnjica from 2011 (in the youth category) until 2019, when he transitioned to Crvena zvezda as a senior player.

Reports from Belgrade indicated yesterday that Red Star will receive just over half a million from Krstović’s most recent transfer, with Zeta set to gain even more.

This is part of the UEFA Solidarity Fund, established by FIFA to support smaller clubs that have contributed to the development of players who subsequently move on for fees.

The “training compensation” regulation has been in place for some time, allowing a player’s original club to receive compensation until the end of the season in which they turn 23. Consequently, Zeta benefitted from Krstović’s transfer moves from Red Star to Dunajska Streda, and from there to Lecce.

Even though the Montenegrin international is now 25 years old, Zeta remains entitled to compensation under the “solidarity contributions” rule.

FIFA’s calculations involve multiplying five percent of the transfer fee by the number of years spent at the club, with earlier years valued less. It’s a complex formula, but it clearly protects clubs in accordance with the duration of a player’s tenure.

Krstović’s transfer to Atalanta for 25 million euros from Lecce ranks among the largest in the history of Montenegrin football concerning compensation, closely following the transfer of Stevan Jovetić from Fiorentina to Manchester City in 2013.

Zeta initially sold Krstović to Red Star in 2019 for 250 thousand euros (plus a 20 percent share in any subsequent transfer), as per Transfermarkt. At that time, the young Montenegrin international struggled to make an impact in the red and white jersey—whether Red Star overlooked his potential or not—and was sold to Dunajska Streda for 400 thousand euros.

Krstović excelled in Slovakia, prompting Lecce to acquire him for nearly four million euros in 2023. The value of that move has become evident in recent weeks.

In total, factoring in the transfer to Red Star, FIFA training compensation, and the Solidarity Fund, Zeta has earned nearly one million two hundred thousand euros (1.175 million) from Krstović’s various transfers.

Zeta has been competing in the Senior League of the FSCG – Centar Association of Clubs for the past two years; last year, they managed to reach the Second League, but were relegated back to the third tier due to match-fixing allegations, alongside Budva.

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