Inter’s management had dinner with Antonio Conte last night to reassure their nervous head coach, according to Gazzetta dello Sport.
The Nerazzurri are in Singapore for the start of their preseason tour in Asia but Conte is worried about the club’s lack of progress in the transfer window.
Yesterday he told reporters Inter were ‘behind schedule’ and warned his employers to ensure they kept the promises made upon his appointment.
Conte was again informed of the difficulties involved in signing Romelu Lukaku, especially if Mauro Icardi does not leave first.
Beppe Marotta and Piero Ausilio will join Conte, club president Steven Zhang and Suning’s owner Zhang Jindong in a larger transfer summit in Nanjing on Monday.
In the meantime, those present at dinner on Friday reassured Conte that Inter’s next three matches – against Manchester United, Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain – were only of relative importance.
“Conte is impatient and he doesn’t want to embarrass himself in preseason,” Gazzetta reported.
“It might only be July and they might only be friendlies, but Inter are playing prestigious opponents and will be watched on television around the world.”
Suning are determined to take Inter back to the top of European football but they are also determined to respect the Nerazzurri’s Financial Fair Play obligations.
The Chinese consortium do not want to make the same mistakes city rivals Milan made in previous seasons, which led to the Rossoneri’s exclusion from the upcoming Europa League.
