Inter’s 2022/23 season was the epitome of a rollercoaster. Defeating Fiorentina and AC Milan to claim the Coppa Italia and Supercoppa, respectively, were feats that would pale in comparison to the potential UEFA Champions League triumph. Unfortunately for Simone Inzaghi’s men, Manchester City was too tough of a nut to crack. The Citizens lifted the UCL trophy to the sky, grounding Inter in a harsh reality that still hasn’t escaped the Milanese club this summer.
A SHAMBOLIC TRANSFER STRATEGY
Hiding from the gravity of Inter’s departures at the end of the 22/23 season wouldn’t do any good. Milan Skriniar ran down his contract, Edin Dzeko packed his suitcase and headed to Fenerbahce, Marcelo Brozovic hopped on the Arabian gravy train, and Andre Onana embraced a Premier League opportunity with Manchester United.
This isn’t to mention Romelu Lukaku’s return to Chelsea, which warrants a blog post of its own. After more than a month of waiting, rigorous haggling and incessant time-wasting, Lukaku left Inter empty-handed and scrambling for a replacement. Sporting director Piero Ausilio ended up chasing alternatives, only to find one shut door after the other. Although snagging Marcus Thuram from AC Milan sufficed to replace Dzeko, Lukaku’s replacement is still yet to be found. Alvaro Morata and Folarin Balogun are two costly options that Inter is considering splurging on, but the club board seems to prefer spending Onana’s transfer money on the club’s accrued debt.
As the commencement of the Serie A draws ever closer, Inter sees its window of opportunity to sign a prolific striker shrink. It is yet to be seen whether the Nerazzurri will decide to bite the bullet and spend big to replace Lukaku well. Failing to do so will shift them further back in the pecking order for the favourites to clinch the Serie A title.
AN ILL OMEN OR A FAMILIAR MISTAKE?
At the beginning of the previous season, most pundits weren’t impressed with Inter’s transfer strategy. Many claimed that the Nerazzurri’s ageing squad wouldn’t hold well against the several competitions Inter would be participating in; could they have been more wrong than that? Inzaghi did an exceptional job of binding the team together, almost sending Inter to the first UCL victory since the uber-famous 2010 treble. Might we be committing the same mistake by stating that Inter’s transfer strategy is lacking?
Thus far, Inter has made the following signings:
- Marcus Thuram (free)
- Juan Cuadrado (free)
- Davide Frattesi (€6m + €20m next season + Samuele Mulattieri)
- Yann Sommer (€6.75m)
- Yann Bisseck (€7m)
With Lazar Samardzic soon to be made official, Inter seems to have backed up some of its exits well. That said, expecting Inzaghi to compete on all fronts with this team is a big ask, to say the least. Moreover, some questions about Inter’s long-term planning should resurface from last season, with the signings of Cuadrado (35) and Sommer (34) not exactly promoting the longevity one would expect from a top European club.
SERIE A PREDICTION
Despite Inter’s transfer market shortcomings, it is still the favourite to clinch its 20th Serie A title at 2.75, which would notch a second star to its logo. If Inzaghi manages to gel the team together, as he did throughout the early stage of the 22/23 season, we can expect a solid Inter side.
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