Inter Milan could move for Porto striker Mehdi Taremi during the January transfer window.
This according to Spanish news outlet Sport, via FCInterNews. The outlet claim that the Nerazzurri could respond to injury problems in attack by signing the 31-year-old Iranian international, while Porto would want €20-25 million for him.
Inter’s attacking options are already starting to look a bit threadbare.
The Nerazzurri headed into the season with four senior forwards competing for two starting positions.
There is captain Lautaro Martinez, and big name summer signing Marcus Thuram.
And in reserve are Marko Arnautovic and Alexis Sanchez.
But already in the first few weeks of the campaign, the former picked up a significant muscle injury. Arnautovic is currently out with a thigh strain that should keep him out of action until late next month at the earliest.
And Thuram had to come off in yesterday’s Champions League match against Benfica with a calf problem of his own.
The Frenchman’s injury doesn’t necessarily look to be serious. But it underlines the perils of potentially lacking depth in attack for Inter, given the injury to Arnautovic.
Inter Could Make January Move For Porto Striker Mehdi Taremi
As such, Sport report, Inter are seriously contemplating dipping into the market in January.
If the injury problems in attack look as though they could compromise the team’s performances across several competitions, the club could use the January transfer window as an opportunity to bring in another striker.
And Sport name one of the Nerazzurri’s primary targets.
Taremi is a player who Inter had been considering a move for already over the summer.
There were talks to sign the 31-year-old as Inter searched for a striker following the collapse of their relationship with Romelu Lukaku.
In the end, Inter moved for Arnautovic instead.
Meanwhile, Inter’s city rivals AC Milan also chased Taremi.
There were reportedly serious talks for the Rossoneri to sign the Iranian in the final days of the transfer window. However, these fell through.
In any event, Sport report that if Inter do decide to make the move for Thuram, the price tag would be around €20-25 million.
And everything could come down to Porto’s willingness to sell.
Taremi’s contract with the Portuguese giants runs out at the end of next June. They may well see the prospect of cashing in while they have the chance as too tempting to pass up.
On the other hand, Taremi remains an important player for Porto.
Thus the Portuguese team could decide to resist offers for the Iranian and keep him around for sporting reasons over the second half of the campaign.