There is set to be a revolution of the defence at Inter with Milan Skrniar ready to leave for Paris Saint-Germain on a free transfer and Alessandro Bastoni being linked with a move away as well. It also can’t be ruled out that Stefan de Vrij is leaving given he is out of contract at the end of the season.
It is a season that, in some regards, many Inter fans would love to be over. Whilst they are into the quarter-finals of the Champions League and are a win away from the Coppa Italia final, very few Inter games have been enjoyable to watch this season.
The Nerazzurri are scrambling to make it into the Champions League again as the money is absolutely crucial to them, figures in the realm of €100 million. With Skriniar seemingly set to join PSG when his deal expires and Bastoni being linked with a move away to teams such as Juventus, Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur and PSG.
Who could replace Bastoni and Skriniar at Inter?
It was reported by La Gazzetta dello Sport recently that Atalanta defender Merih Demiral is the top Nerazzurri target to come in and take Skriniar’s place in the team. Whilst RB Salzburg defender Oumar Solet has also been linked, Demiral is the favoured target.
That is a move that, for financial reasons rather than the desires of the player, would likely require Inter to reach the Champions League again. By the summer of 2023, Demiral will still have three years to run on his Atalanta contract and he will not come cheap.
La Dea also currently owns another defender that Inter would like to sing, according to Gazzetta. Bastoni has long been viewed as Italy’s most promising young defender but that mantle now belongs to Giorgio Scalvini, who Inter want to sign.
This is another deal that will not be easy to pull off given he is under contract until June 2027 and he is a highly sought-after player.
Bastoni’s agent plays down transfer talk
Alessandro Bastoni is out of contract with Inter in June 2024 which means that the Nerazzurri must sell him this summer if they want to receive a fee, or get him to sign a new contract.
His agent, Tullio Tinit, was spoken to by FCInter1908 reporters recently outside of the Inter headquarters. He stressed the fact that Bastoni is an Inter fan and wants to stay at the club.
“These are the first meetings, we are talking. Surely there will also be space in the coming weeks. He has always been an Inter fan, so can the fans rest easy? I don’t know why they should be agitated. You journalists spread the rumours, neither Bastoni nor I have ever said such things. The player is an Inter fan and has great interest in staying at Inter,” Tinit said.
He then spoke to TMW Radio (via Football Italia) where he showed anguish at how contract negotiations are views and reported.
“I have never pushed a player to run down his contract and become a free agent, it was the clubs who did that,” said Tinti.
“Clearly, it takes two to reach an agreement on a contract. When a player has only a year left on his deal and can legitimately say he wants to wait, it gets all the headlines. When a club leaves a player waiting until the last minute, that is considered normal.
“At times, a player doesn’t sign because he was made to wait too long or because the club was not interested in giving him a new contract. When people behave in a fair manner, I don’t think it becomes a problem.”
