Wanda Icardi, the wife, and agent, of Mauro Icardi has spoken very openly about the 26-year-old’s difficult last few months at Inter.
Firstly she spoke on whether she tried to convince Giuseppe Marotta otherwise about wishing to move him on.
“I talked to him, they’d assured him that they were strengthening the team regardless. Football is a business, Marotta makes the decisions and has to look after the accounts,” she told Corriere della Sera.
“We’ll see who’s done well in all this. I never had any doubts about Icardi: I received 15 offers. Marotta knew it too. If we got to the last day of the transfer window, it’s not because we are crazy: we know Icardi’s value.
“It’s not a divorce, Mauro and Inter are like lovers who are taking time to reflect. Relationships have deteriorated due to many misunderstandings, but his desire to play for Inter and love of the fans remain.
“In a long relationship there are crises. Ultimately we leave each other with a relationship that’s been patched up and without any betrayal.”
She then discussed the legal action that was launched against the club but has since lapsed due to his move to PSG.
“Suing Inter wasn’t about money, only the ignorant believe that. If it was for money, he would’ve left 3-4 years ago, when Inter weren’t playing in the Champions League. He stayed out of love. He wanted to be reinstated and train with Conte: who knows where he could’ve gone with him.”
Icardi drew strong links to Juventus but Wanda assures her husband would not have joined Inter’s rivals.
“Icardi was Inter’s captain, he would never have gone to Juventus. I have a friendly relationship with Paratici. He was interested and the relationship will continue.
“He likes playing in Italy, he knows the League well, he has scored 135 goals. I think he’ll come back. I don’t know where and how, but his priority will always be Inter.”
She then discussed his transfer to PSG.
“He couldn’t say ‘no’. He has everything needed to win here. They’re a club full of stars and Mauro is honoured to be part of them. At the end of the season we’ll choose what the best option for him is: I work for him, but he makes the decisions.
“I’m his wife, not just his agent: I know him. I knew he would say ‘yes’. The PSG choice came after a year of controversy and tension. He also did it to give his children and family a bit of peace. If he’d stayed, the saga would’ve carried on.
“They said I hurt my husband, the father of my children. Do people think when they talk? How can I not want the best for Mauro? His best is mine too.
“I’m not the bad guy in this story, I’m the person who found a solution. It was difficult to get out of this situation with a team at PSG’s level.
She concluded: “Our decision makes him, our family and I proud. As an agent, I managed to do my best without betraying neither the majority of fans who love him nor Inter.”
Wanda then spoke on Massimo Moratti’s words of support in recent months.
“Everyone was beating Mauro up, Moratti came out with a statement to defend him: he is a great man. His words were oxygen when I was suffocating.”
Media reports have suggested that Icardi never got on with the Croatian’s at Inter but Wanda has insisted that this is not the case.
“Everything has been inflated by the media. The relationships have always been cordial, one of them is my neighbour.”
Wanda’s involvement on Tiki Taka has created a lot of controversy but she says she will continue in her position.
“I never spoke ill about them or hurt them. I always tell the truth. Whoever tells lies is without courage. I’ll continue with Tiki Taka. Mediaset is a family. I’m a person who doesn’t exist: a wife and agent. To hear a woman talking about football is strange. But companies have always treated me with respect and equality.”
She also explained Icardi’s decision to skip Inter’s Europa League match against Rapid Vienna just days after being stripped of the club captaincy.
“He didn’t refuse to travel to Vienna, it didn’t happen that way. He was already playing with knee pain. When they removed the armband, he said: ‘To play, not only the body is needed but, above all, the soul.’ That broke me at the time. Inter knew that Mauro had already gone to Barcelona three times for treatment.”