FOOTBALL

Why are Inter Milan selling their best players?

Published

3 years ago

August 18, 2021

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Romelu Lukaku returned to Chelsea seven years after leaving the club for Everton.

The reigning champions of Europe spent £98 million on a player they sold for £35 million.

The Belgian revitalized his career at Inter Milan, where he scored 64 goals in 95 appearances and staked a claim for the crown of Europe’s best striker.

While Lukaku got a second chance to prove himself at Chelsea, he wasn’t overly eager to take it.

At Inter, he had just led Inter Milan to the Scudetto, breaking Juvetus’s 10-year stranglehold on the Serie A title.

He appeared to be the face of the Inter Milan revival; his murals graced the walls of the Fashion Capital of the World; the Nerazzurri fans sang his heroics on the streets. He wanted the story to continue.

After winning their first league title in a decade, Inter fans were dreaming of a new era of dominance.

Zhang Jindong, chairman of the holding company that owns Inter Milan, promised that this is a dawn of a new era indeed.

The club will not be content winning the Scudetto and set its eyes on more glory.

Severe financial troubles

Unfortunately, it turned out to be an empty promise.

Suning Group, the Chinese conglomerate owners of Inter Milan, are going through severe financial troubles.

The pandemic has had severely affected the company’s finances. With the debts piling up above the billion-dollar mark, they were forced to sell 25% of their shares to Chinese government investors.

Ever since their takeover of Inter from Massimo Moratti in 2016, the group has invested $845 million in the club.

Just before the pandemic broke out, they had spent almost €200m on transfers including the marquee signing of Romalu Lukaku from Manchester United, which set the club back as much as €74m.

Arrival and departure of Conte

They brought in Antonio Conte with a clear vision; reinstate Inter as an Italian elite.

The former Juventus manager didn’t disappoint.

Even though Inter didn’t meet expectations in Europe, they finished second in Serie A in 2019/20. The following season, they ended up winning it.

But the financial woes of Inter owners compelled them to take extreme measures to curb costs.

They have taken out more than $300m on loan to fund club operations. To finance the loan repayments, they decided to liquefy the club’s best assets.

Getting wind of this, Conte left the club, citing a difference in opinions regarding the club’s future.

Achraf Hakimi joined PSG for a €60m fee. A few weeks later, Lukaku was sold to Chelsea for €115m. Simone Inzaghi, the new Inter Milan head coach will only get €40m to replace the players who have already left the club.

More players could leave

With the transfer window still active, more players, including the likes of Lautaro Martinez and Nicolo Barella, could leave the club for hefty fees.

Needless to say, it would be difficult for Inter Milan to hold on to their title this season, given the hardship they are going through.

The fans are furious with the owners, and they are demanding their departure from the club.

Suning Group is actively negotiating to sell the club to a British equity farm.

Should the deal go through, Inter fans might get to see more stability at the club.

FOOTBALL

WATCH: Georgina Rodriguez makes huge claim on Cristiano Ronaldo’s retirement in Football

Published

9 months ago

March 3, 2024

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Georgina Rodriguez made a huge claim on the future of her husband and star player, Cristiano Ronaldo, in Football. In a brief interaction with a host recently, Rodriguez was asked about the time left for Cristiano to make an impact at the highest level. Georgina looked honest in her approach to the question of the host and claimed something the fans would not love to hear.

Georgina claimed that the Portugal star has maybe one year more from him at the highest level. She felt that Ronaldo might play two more years before retiring and not more than that. She was however not sure if he would play for just one or two years and added that the Al Nassr star could also play more than that.

Watch the video of Georgina Rodriguez here –

🚨🎙️| Georgina Rodriguez on Cristiano Ronaldo’s future at Paris Fashion Week yesterday:

“Cristiano one more year, then it’s over. Maybe two, I don’t know.”

(via @ArobaseGiovanny)pic.twitter.com/4dxw2j5DuC

— Pubity Sport (@pubitysport) March 3, 2024

“Cristiano one more year, then it’s over. Maybe two, I don’t know,” said Rodriguez in the little chat she had with the host. The video has gone viral on X and the fans have started sharing it on different platforms. Some of the fans feel that Georgina might be right, while others feel that she could be wrong, given the fitness and longevity of the star player.

Legacy of Cristiano Ronaldo

On the 5th of February, Ronaldo celebrated his 39th birthday. He is currently one of the oldest players in the world. In the past, players at this age would have retired way back. But the fitness and consistency of Ronaldo make him play the sport as long as he wishes. In his career so far, Ronaldo has won many major leagues for Portugal and league teams like Real Madrid, Al Nassr, and Manchester United.

With United, Portugal won some major leagues like the FA Cup and the Champions League. With Real Madrid, the 39-year-old won the leagues like the UCL, Copa Del Rey and La Liga. He won it three consecutive times for Real Madrid. For Portugal, Cristiano had a huge contribution to Portugal. He has the most number of appearances and goals for an international team and won the Euro 2016 with Portugal.

FOOTBALL

Real Madrid’s Jude Bellingham slapped with Red Card as he argued with referee

Published

9 months ago

March 3, 2024

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Jude Bellingham shown Red Card (Image Credit: Twitter)

England and Real Madrid player Jude Bellingham was slapped with a Red Card during the La Liga game against Valencia. In the game, the home team, Valencia was leading by 2-0 after 30 minutes before Madrid scored in the injury time of the first half. Vinicius Junior opened the scoring for Madrid while Hugo Duro (27′) and Roman Yaremchuk (30′) scored a goal each.

In the 76th minute, Junior scored an equalizer to keep the team in the game. However, in the injury time of the second half, Bellingham was given a red card as he argued with the referee against calling it a full-time before he could score. In reply, the match official decided to slap the England international with a Red Card. The team coach Carlo Ancelotti wasn’t happy with the verdict as the Three Lions player was making a pass at the time.

Jude Bellingham verbally abusing officials and other footballers at the slightest provocation needs to be talked about more. It’s embarrassing he gets applauded by Real Madrid Fans.

Mason Greenwood should’ve allowed La Liga to deal with this simp. pic.twitter.com/ixYSw6YxaC

— Herman Facundo© (@hermanfacundo_7) March 3, 2024

“I think what’s just happened is unprecedented. It’s never happened to me,” Ancelotti told reporters.

“We had possession of the ball and the match should have been finished when Valencia had the ball.

“What bothers us is the red card for Bellingham because he didn’t say anything insulting. He was frustrated of course,” said Ancelotti, adding that Bellingham had used a common English swearword when telling the referee it was a goal.

We are annoyed with Jude Bellingham’s Red Card: Carlo Ancelotti

“We were annoyed with Bellingham’s red card. He didn’t say any insults. He said in English ‘it’s a f—ing goal,’ but he was just saying what we were all thinking … [The referee] allowed play to continue. I think he made a mistake.”

“[Bellingham] was clear in what he said,” Ancelotti added. “He was quite vehement [in his reaction] but that’s normal, after what happened. It wasn’t an insult, not at all.”

FOOTBALL

PL 2023-24: MCFC vs MUFC Dream11 Prediction, Playing XI, Fantasy League Today’s Captain, Vice-Captain, and more for Manchester derby

Published

9 months ago

March 2, 2024

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Super Sunday is set to witness the Manchester Derby in the Premier League 2023-24. The match between Manchester City (MCFC) and Manchester United (MUFC) is set to take place in Etihad Stadium, the home ground of Manchester City. The two teams have had a contrasting journey in the league till now. The fortunes of City changed ever since Pep Guardiola took over the club as the manager.

While the home side are placed in the second position in the points table currently, United are in the sixth place in the points table. In their previous encounter, City hammered Luton Town by 6-2 in the FA Cup. United have shown massive improvements in the last few weeks after not having a good start to their campaign. United were involved in a thrilling game where they beat Nottingham Forrest by 1-0 in their last game.

Both teams feature some of the best players in the world. The likes of Julian Alvarez, Erling Haaland, Marcus Rashford, Kevin De Bruyne, Bruno Fernandes, Casemiro, and others would be taking part in the match. Manchester City will start the match as the favourites, given their record in the ongoing league so far and the match taking place in their home. United with their improved record can challenge the home side.

MCFC vs MUFC – Match Details

Match – Manchester City (MCFC) vs Manchester United (MUFC), Premier League 2023-24

Venue – Etihad Stadium, Manchester

Date and Time – 3^rd March 2024, 21:00 IST

Live Coverage – Star Sports Network and Disney plus Hot Star

MCFC vs MUFC – Head-to-Head

Both the teams from Manchester have a rich history in the sport. they have been up against each other in 191 instances. In as many games, Manchester United have been historically the better side with 78 wins to their name. City have managed to win 60 wins, as 53 games ended in a draw. In the last five games between the two sides in the Premier League, City have won four of the five games.