Inter have launched a scathing attack on Milan’s city mayor Giuseppe Sala following his comments today on their plans to build a new stadium.
Sala told reporters on Thursday that there could be no further progress on the new San Siro, which Inter want to build alongside AC Milan, until the Nerazzurri had ‘clarified their fate’ regarding their ownership situation.
He warned Inter he could not approve the building of a new stadium with such uncertainty surrounding the club, provoking a furious response in an official statement this afternoon.
“FC Internazionale Milano has a glorious history of over a hundred years,” Inter fumed.
“It existed before Mayor Sala and will continue to exist after his mandate ends.
“We find the statements of the Mayor of Milan offensive to the ownership, disrespectful to the history and reality of the club and its millions of fans in Milan and around the world and irrelevant to the current administrative process of the project A New Stadium for Milan.
“Should it be confirmed that Inter and the ownership are not appreciated by the current administration, we will take the consequent decisions.”
Sala gave his comments to Calciomercato.com earlier today and presumably did not expect such an angry retort.
He had said: “Until Inter clarify their fate, things must necessarily be at a standstill for us.
“I want to say this clearly to the Milanese clubs: we are not just talking about a stadium but about a project which half the investment is on the stadium and the rest on the remainder of the area.
“It will take five or six years of work, and I cannot entrust a district of the city for such a long period when future ownership is not certain.”
Last week, Tuttosport reported Inter could even ditch their plans to build a new stadium in conjunction with AC Milan, should the club change hands.
Milan’s city council must deliver a verdict on whether there is a public interest in building the stadium, but they do not want to deal with such a political ‘hot potato’ at present.
Not even the postponement of the upcoming municipal elections (now scheduled for October) has brought about an acceleration.
Today’s developments are hardly going to help Inter, AC Milan and the Milan city council make progress either, with tension between the parties now clearly through the roof.
