Inter cannot promise Antonio Conte they will keep all their star players this summer, a report in the Italian media warned tonight.
As per FcInterNews.it, the Nerazzurri are hoping to keep all their best players while also strengthening the squad, but the club have serious economic problems and sacrifices might be necessary.
Inter’s directors need to reduce the club’s wage bill and sort their balance sheet, and they hope to achieve this by offloading unwanted players like Joao Mario, Dalbert, Radja Nainggolan and others.
But there is no certainty about how many of those outcasts they will be able to sell, which means they will be forced at least consider offers that arrive for their star men.
Conte, the directors and the club all want to keep the starting XI intact, but the current situation means they cannot be certain to achieve that goal.
Suning have never let Inter sell a key player since they took over the club in 2016, so it would be a first for their tenure if they were obliged to make such a sacrifice.
It might be necessary if they cannot shift all their squad players and loan men quickly enough, and that means nobody can be considered ‘untouchable’ as things stand.
Steven Zhang will discuss this with Conte if and when the pair meet for their much-awaited summit, but the situation is to remain uncertain for the time being.
The only way Inter could be certain of keeping all their stars quickly would be if they received lots of offers for squad players, and that is a ‘fantasy’ at least in the short term.