Antonio Conte will finally meet Steven Zhang to discuss his future at Inter today, according to a report in the Italian media.
Corriere dello Sport’s print edition said Conte and Zhang had the chance to meet now Inter have resolved their immediate liquidity issues, following the arrival of Oaktree Capital’s financing deal.
Inter still need to cut costs ahead of next season and it remains to be seen whether Conte will be convinced by the project Zhang puts forward.
The ball is in Conte’s court, the Rome-based paper explained, who now must decide whether to trust Suning’s ambitions or seek an exit.
Conte would struggle to accept the idea of Inter reducing their ambitions, but he could still decide to stay if he is promised there will be no repeat of this season’s never-ending off-field turmoil.
Inter’s head coach has a central role at the club and his €13 million annual salary is another reason it would be difficult for him to leave, the report added.
Conte doesn’t have other offers on the table at present, despite previous interest from Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal which hasn’t turned into anything serious.
If he were to part company with Inter, the parties would therefore need to reach a mutual termination agreement and that might not be easy.
