Antonio Conte will only agree to stay at Inter if the club can promise to keep their ambitions high, according to a report from a leading Italian broadcaster today.
Sky Sport Italia said both Conte and Inter president Steven Zhang wanted to keep working together, but the question was whether they could agree on how to move forwards.
Conte wants reassurance from Inter’s owners Suning because he wants to keep fighting for important and ambitious targets, following this season’s Serie A title success.
His future could depend on how many key players he is prepared to lose (for financial reasons) in the transfer window, with Inter expected to make a sacrifice so they can balance the books.
Despite the continuing uncertainty over Conte’s future, Sky offered two reasons for Inter fans to remain optimistic about him staying at the club.
Firstly, Conte earns a huge salary at Inter and there is no guarantee he would be offered a similar amount from another club, especially given the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Secondly, Conte has formed a strong bond with Inter’s players after creating ‘a fortress’ inside the walls of Appiano Gentile.
It would be ‘a great sign’ for everyone if Conte agreed to stay at Inter, the report added, because it would show Suning had intentions of following through on Jindong Zhang’s comments two weeks ago, when he said the Scudetto was ‘only the start’.
