Inter president Steven Zhang wasted no time in abandoning the European Super League when the project fell apart, a report in the Italian media explained today.
Gazzetta dello Sport’s print edition said Zhang attended the video call on Tuesday night in which the 12 rebel clubs sought a ‘dignified’ route out of their tunnel, following widespread condemnation for the plans.
He was informed of the general mood in Italy towards the Super League idea and the potential risks presented by proceeding with such an operation.
With this in mind, Zhang was the first person after the Premier League’s six clubs withdrew to raise his hand and pull Inter out of the agreement as well.
Inter announced their departure from the Super League in a two-stage process, unofficially telling Ansa at 1.18am on Wednesday that they would pull out before issuing an official statement in the morning.
The Nerazzurri delayed official confirmation because they had agreed to wait with AC Milan and Juventus before commenting, the Milan-based paper revealed, but they also wanted to make their position clear quickly (hence the unofficial comment to Ansa).
Zhang first received serious contact about the Super League back in January, when Real Madrid president Florentino Perez and Juventus chairman Agnelli got in touch.
Inter’s president was never leading the project but he was more than happy to get on board, having been ‘stimulated’ by the opportunity to reshape European football and put the club’s financial troubles behind them.
The Super League would not have changed Suning’s plans for Inter either way, Gazzetta assured, as they would have continued to seek a new minority shareholder anyway.
Inter’s management had heard of talk about the Super League but they had no idea the negotiations were this advanced when the announcement came on Sunday night.
