Legendary former Inter defender Beppe Bergomi believes that Inter must not let the uncertainty around Milan Skriniar’s situation at the club drag on, and that he should in fact not be sold.

Speaking to Italian broadcaster Sky Sport Italia, Bergomi stressed that there should be a deadline for when the Nerazzurri would stop listening to offers for the 27-year-old amid Paris Saint-Germain’s interest.

Inter are still waiting on bated breath to see what happens with PSG’s pursuit of Skriniar, as the French club have not given any indication that a massive offer is imminent but also haven’t really dropped out of the race for the Slovakian.

As long as the uncertainty lingers, the team will be unsettled in a certain way, and so in the view of Bergomi the key thing that must happen is that a line be drawn after which the situation will not drag on any longer.

“This situation weighs on the team a lot,” he said, “Skriniar would never be sold – he’s someone who gives the team a strong identity, he feels deeply identified with Inter like Barella, Bastoni, and Lautaro do.”

“Then it’s difficult to get into the club’s plan,” he continued, “the idea was to sell Skriniar in order to balance out the transfer window.”

“We need a deadline,” he stressed, “selling him in the last few days of the window would complicate things as far as the search for a replacement. Akanji is a good player, quick, he can replace him but he’ll never be Skriniar.”

Regarding the return of Romelu Lukaku, Bergomi said that “I expect the Lukaku who had become a leader in Milan to be back, creating a strong bond within the entire team.”

“It’s important that he comes back with that desire and passion,” he continued, “from the first friendlies you can see that he wants to prove his worth.”

“Inter have lost a vital player in Perisic,” Bregomi said, “Gosens should never be compared to him in terms of his characteristics, but they’ve gained something different in attack.”

He stressed that “I expect Lukaku to be strong, decisive and determined.”

Speaking about Inter coach Simone Inzaghi, he said that “The pressure is high, Inzaghi  did well in his first season, winning two significant trophies and just barely missing out on the Scudetto.”

He continued that “Inzaghi will have to know how to adapt to the squad at his disposal.”

Of who he expects to be the Nerazzurri’s key player next season, Bergomi said that “Everyone is a top player, but I’ll make an obvious choice – Brozovic.”

“Asllani is not the same player as the Croat,” he said, of Brozovic’s backup for next season, “and we’ve seen how important he is to the team.”

“He’ll always be the key man because he has great character,” he added of the Croat.

“I’d like to see Casadei in the first team,” he said, “although I don’t know if Inter will be able to keep hold of him. He’s 1.86 m tall, he has the kind of physicality that’s missing in the midfield, and if Chelsea want him it means that he has real quality.”

Of the timing of the Milan derby right at the start of the season, Bergomi said that “Milan and Inter are my two favourites for the Scudetto at the moment. Anything can happen, but they are the teams that are best-equipped if you think about the whole ten month journey.”

“Then Juve becomes dangerous as they strengthen in the market, and Roma are very intriguing to me as well,” he added.