Bologna striker Marko Arnautovic has revealed that he was on the verge of joining Lazio in the summer of 2009, before Jose Mourinho intervened and convinced him to join Inter.
Speaking to Milan-based newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport in an interview published in today’s print edition, via FCInterNews, the 33-year-old recalled the background to his joining the Nerazzurri on loan from Twente.
Arnautovic has had a long and winding road which has led him to Bologna, where the Austrian is currently in the hunt for the Capocannoniere trophy.
Stints with Werder Bremen, Stoke City, West Ham United, and Shanghai SIPG have been among the striker’s ports of call, with Inter an early stop along the way.
Arnautovic was part of the Nerazzurri squad that won the European Treble in the 2009-10 season, although he was still a young player at the time and didn’t feature much.
However, it was still an important learning experience for the Austrian, although he has revealed that it was only Mourinho’s insistence that made the move happen in the first place.
“I could have gone to Chelsea from Twente, where I would have signed a five-year deal, but then I got injured,” the striker explained.
“Then Lazio arrived, a move was practically agreed, but then Mourinho called me.”
Arnautovic explained that “Ibra was still there at the time and I wanted to play with him. I didn’t know he was about to be sold to Barcelona.”
