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'He's a ninja' - Inter announce Nainggolan signing while Roma complete Pastore deal

The Belgian midfielder links up with former boss Luciano Spalletti, but Roma have already found a replacement.

INTER MILAN HAVE signed Radja Nainggolan from Roma, the club have confirmed.

The Belgian midfielder moves to Inter after making 203 Serie A appearances for Roma, who he joined from Cagliari, initially on loan, in 2014.

Nainggolan will be reunited with coach Luciano Spalletti at San Siro – the pair previously worked together in the Italian capital – ahead of the Nerazzurri’s return to the Champions League.

Inter, who snatched fourth place in Serie A with a dramatic final-day victory over Lazio in May, have reportedly paid €24 million to bring in the 30-year-old from their domestic rivals.

Manager Spalletti has already hailed Nainggolan, telling Sky Sport Italia prior to the move being officially confirmed: “He is the turbine we were missing from our engine.

“The fact that as soon as he was on the market, he chose to come to Inter is an important sign for us.

“He can do well. He has the character to go against any opponent. He is a ninja. He fights with everyone on any field.”

Nainggolan won 30 caps for Belgium, scoring six goals, before announcing his international retirement for the second time in less than a year after missing out on the Red Devils’ World Cup squad.

However, he was an integral part of the Roma team that reached the last four of the Champions League in the 2017-18 season, Eusebio Di Francesco’s side rallying on home soil to sensationally knock out Barcelona at the quarter-final stage before losing 7-6 on aggregate to Liverpool in the next round.

Davide Santon and Nicolo Zaniolo have gone in the other direction and joined Roma, while Argentine midfielder Javier Pastore also moves to the Italian capital from Paris Saint-Germain.

Pastore underwent a medical this morning before the switch from Paris Saint-Germain was completed.

The playmaker’s transfer will reportedly be worth an initial €20million. The 29-year-old was a bit-part figure at PSG in 2017-18 and his lack of action at club level resulted in him being left out of the Argentina squad for the World Cup.

Pastore won five Ligue 1 titles during a successful seven-year stint at PSG but is now set to return to Italy, where he plied his trade for Palermo from 2009 until 2011.

Roma also announced the signing of Justin Kluivert — son of Patrick — from Ajax last week.

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