JUVENTUS HAVE ENQUIRED about signing Mauro Icardi from Inter, the Bianconeri’s sporting director, Fabio Paratici, has confirmed.
The forward’s future in Milan has been under question for some time, with his current deal expiring in 2021 and speculation linking him to Barcelona, Manchester United and Real Madrid.
That talk led Icardi to be stripped of the captaincy last week by the Serie A club, who appointed goalkeeper Samir Handanovic as the forward’s replacement. Icardi has been left out of Inter’s squad for their last two fixtures.
And speaking to Rai Radio1, Paratici said: “We asked for info. We wanted to know what Icardi thinks about playing for Juve. But now there are no contacts, he’s an Inter player and we are thinking about our season.
“Lately there has been no contact, we are in February, he is an Inter player and we have important races ahead of us. It’s a theme that we will come back to, or not, in June.”
Paratici also confirmed an interest in Italian youngsters Federico Chiesa, Nicolo Zaniolo, Nicolo Barella and Sandro Tonali, saying: “Very good young players, we are following them.”
Icardi’s wife and agent, meanwhile, Wanda Nara, has suggested that her husband has no intention of leaving Inter despite being devastated at his loss of the club’s captaincy.
“Some say the armband is meaningless, but for Mauro it’s like taking away a leg more than an arm,” Nara said.
“He wears that jersey with such pride and if there were decisions to be made in the past about money or love of the shirt, he always chooses the shirt.
I had no warning at all. I am always in contact with Inter, I have them on speed dial, but I only found out about the decision to revoke his captaincy on Twitter.
“I had a three-hour meeting with people very high up in the club and they never told me anything about it.
“Mauro scored 120 goals with this jersey and when nobody believed, he was the first to pick up the ball and call everyone forward, because he believes in this team. We are a family of Interisti, whether he is on the field or not.”
While the relationship seems strained at best, Nara also says the club took care of her when a rock was reportedly thrown at her car, and downplayed tensions between the sides.
“[Saturday] morning I woke up as usual and was driving with the kids to their training session and fortunately the incident occurred in an area where there are security cameras,” she said.
“I was in shock, I called someone at Inter and five minutes later [chief executive Beppe] Marotta called. They were very reassuring and helpful.”
Marotta, who has made it clear that naming a new captain was not discipline for Icardi and that negotiations over a new contract would continue, was also the first person from Inter to make contact when the decision was made.
“He was very kind and I thank him, because Mauro was so upset,” Nara said. “He was in terrible condition. When he’s upset, he clams up and tries to bottle things up, tries to be the strong one.
“I asked Moratti if he could please help get Mauro to play again, because it means so much to him. It is not our intention to leave Inter, not at all.”
- Omni
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