SNEIJDER: "IF THE RIGHT OFFER ARRIVES, INTER WILL LET ME GO".
It is known that when foreign players go to the national team, they often give away statements that when they are in Italy they would not even dream of making. This is what happened with Wesley Sneijder, who declared on a local television station: “I'm playing for Inter and there are chances that I will stay with the Nerazzurri even after 31 August. However, I do not exclude that there are also the possibilities that I will leave. The situation doesn't depend on me, but on the club, which was clear: if the right offer arrives for me, they'll let me go. For this reason, I don't exclude the possibility of leaving Inter."
Sneijder, who has clearly placed the responsibility for a possible sale on the club, is leaving, but the Manchester derby probably won't take place, because United are slipping away, leaving the field free for City, willing to pay the 6 million euro that the Dutchman receives at Inter, perhaps adding some bonuses to be collected at the end of the season in case of success.
Carlitos Tevez had himself photographed on the Manchester City training ground, but the image smacked of a studied pose, something far from the Argentine's real state of mind. Who doesn't want to stay at City anymore. He has said it several times, Mancini has already come to terms with it, the management knows that keeping him will be practically impossible. The most probable destination is always Inter, who could reinvest the money earned from the sale of Sneijder to get to the centre-forward.
Eto'o stays at the window, not at all satisfied with Inter's transfer campaign, but there is always the shadow of Anzhi's Russians on him. Second tier championship, a distant and unattractive country, the risk of being forgotten on the panorama of great international football, but on the other hand there are 20 million euros a year on the plate, a sensational signing that would make anyone waver. The Russians are ready to give Inter 30 million euros, and maybe even raise it if the first answer is negative.
Pandev, meanwhile, is about to accept the offer to go on loan to Genoa, with whom Inter have closed an important deal: they have taken half of Kucka, who could be left in Genoa for next season.
GALLIANI, MANY SIGHES FOR FABREGAS. CASSANO COULD REMAIN IN THE END. PALOSCHI COLLECTED TO CHIEVO
“Adriano, buy us Fabregas!!!”. “Eeehhh…!!!”. The request was from one of the many fans who flocked to Malpensa to wait for Milan to return from Beijing, the sigh with lots of eyes rolling was that of Adriano Galliani. A way to say many things, which can be read as a "maybe" as much as an "impossible". It is unlikely that Fabregas will eventually reach Milan, the Barcelona hypothesis is always the most accredited, but if the deal fails Milan would be ready to take advantage of it. Much easier to get to Montolivo, the most probable hypothesis, an operation to be closed between now and the end of August.
Chapter Kakà: Galliani would have asked Florentino Perez on loan at the now famous working lunch in Beijing, but the "Casa Blanca" knows that it is an economically disastrous operation for Real Madrid, which after paying 67 million euro should "give" it to Milan, perhaps even taking on half of the brazilian salary (10 million euros a year). Cassano at the moment remains a Rossoneri player, and in the last few hours the idea is taking shape that he may decide to play his cards at Milanello. Prandelli reiterated the need to play in order to be called up, however specifying how there may be exceptions for those players who will be able to take advantage of the minutes that their respective coaches will allow them. This is the case with Cassano, as long as Preziosi doesn't want to attempt a new assault. The one who will leave Milan is Alberto Paloschi: the attacker was sold to Chievo on loan with the right to buy.
ELIA, HAMBURG WANTS 15 MILLION. EASTER, SAMP HYPOTHESIS
The first assault on Elia didn't go well: for the 24-year-old Dutchman, Hamburg starts with a request for 15 million euros, almost double what Marotta would be willing to spend. Juventus emissaries are already in Hamburg to understand what the margins of a negotiation could be that could lead to Turin a valid alternative for the delicate role of high winger, a key position in Conte's system of play (4-2-4), in where the laterals must be impeccable in the two phases, external forwards in the offensive phase, midfielders added in the defensive phase. However, the first choice remains Vargas from Fiorentina, but at the moment Corvino has rejected first Martinez and then Iaquinta as counterparts, preferring Quagliarella, who Juve however do not deem transferable.
The news regarding the outgoing market sees Cristian Pasquato as the protagonist. Already linked to Atalanta, Cagliari and Cesena, as well as numerous Serie B clubs, Pasquato is also interested in Sampdoria, who would like to score a double blow on the Genoa-Turin axis, adding Pasquato to the increasingly probable arrival of Alex Manninger.
DE ROSSI AND THE MOST DIFFICULT CHOICE: RENEWAL OR GOODBYE
Daniele de Rossi is approaching the most important crossroads of his career: deciding whether he wants to stay in Rome or whether to take other paths, which would almost certainly lead abroad. De Rossi, not enthusiastic about the new management taking over from Sensi in Rome, would in fact be evaluating the seasonal salary of 4 million euros plus bonuses offered by Sabatini, against the 7 million a year put on the plate by the usual Manchester City. The heart says Rome, the desire to wear the captain's armband after Totti is great, but the desire to gain experience in another league is just as strong. De Rossi was very attached to the Sensi, the advent of Di Benedetto (despite the words of the new owner who defined him as the future of Roma) does not excite him, and the fact that the renewal is late in arriving is a signal that should not be underestimated. Only 10 months remain until the expiry of the contract, and the more time passes the more De Rossi's future seems far from "his" Rome.
And as if that weren't enough, Francesco Totti's days aren't easy either, who after being described as "too lazy" by Baldini, also received the same opinion from Claudio Ranieri, his former coach: "Sometimes he didn't train with the due rhythms from Monday to Saturday - he declared to the "Gazzetta del Sud" - that's why I sent him to the bench. Lazy? It is a judgment that I share”. Then, after the stick, here's the carrot: “He's the greatest player I've ever coached. Had he left Rome for Barcelona or Manchester, he would have won several Ballon d'Ors”.
GREAT INTERNATIONAL FRIENDSHIPS, A WEDNESDAY NOT TO BE MISSED
Italy-Spain, but not only. Wednesday will be an evening not to be missed, one of those summer nights in which football addicts would like to have three televisions on at the same time. Let's say three because, in addition to Prandelli's national team engaged in Bari against world champions Spain, there are at least two other matches not to be missed: the one between England and Holland (Sneijder's last match as an Inter player?) and the one between Germany and Brazil (with the "Italians" Julio Cesar, Maicon, Lucio, Pato, Robinho and Thiago Silva).
As far as we're concerned, the friendly match at San Nicola will help us understand where Prandelli's project is at less than a year from the European Championship. The opponent is the best (or worst, depending on the point of view) we could face. Spain is currently the strongest and most complete national team. Some stars will be missing, namely Xavi (who left the training camp with a calf problem), Fabregas (who needs to resolve issues related to his future) and Sergio Ramos (who injured his shoulder in Real Madrid's last friendly), but there will be the various Iniesta, Xabi Alonso, Torres, Casillas, Piquè, Villa and Pedro, although many eyes will be focused on Thiago Alcantara (born in the province of Brindisi, when his father Mazinho played for Lecce), the latest discovery of the immense " Cantera” of Barcelona in his first game with the Red Furies shirt. He will be excited, but never as much as Antonio Cassano, who was born and raised in Bari and who wants to return to giving some magic in front of his fans.
Among other international competitions France-Chile, Ukraine-Sweden, Ireland-Croatia and Scotland-Denmark.
ENGLAND AGAINST BALOTELLI: "HE'S A BABY"
It was clear that Mario Balotelli hated Manchester and he never made a secret of it. That the English press didn't look kindly on the attacker was equally evident. Balotelli and England are increasingly distant, especially after the latest strikes that the British press reserved for him the day after the sensational comeback suffered by his City against rivals United (from 0-2 to 3-2 in the Community Shield). "The diary of a two-year-old boy", headlined the Sun, which then listed the "balotellate" of the day, from the head-to-head with Vidic to the unsuccessful plays, up to the skit after the substitution. "Like a toddler who throws toys out of the stroller to attract attention," commented the British newspaper. One more reason to hypothesize a future away from Manchester, at least that's what Balotelli would like. That he is asking Raiola to bring him back to Italy, perhaps to Milan, even if the negotiation is anything but easy. City, which paid him 30 million euros and guarantees him a salary of 3 million a year, don't want to sell him out, and there currently don't seem to be any teams in Italy willing to go crazy for him.
FLORENCE IN CHAOS, THE DELLA VALLEY THREATEN TO LEAVE
It's not an easy summer for Fiorentina, for the fans, and for the owners. Already from the first days of training in Cortina (and then in San Pietro a Sieve) it was clear that the square was in turmoil, with the fans on a war footing and ready to contest from the very first outings. In the city the climate was equally tense, with banners aimed at Andrea and Diego della Valle, guilty, according to the hottest groups of the Curva Fiesole, of not wanting to spend money on the strengthening campaign. The answer came dry and decisive: “I need to know very clearly – Andrea della Valle wrote in a letter – what the city, the mayor in the lead, and the real fans want and expect for the future of Fiorentina, therefore understand if there are still reasons why the Fiorentina owners agree to continue a common path. If these assumptions were not there, as we have clearly said on other occasions, we are ready to step aside". As if that weren't enough, the Viola management was very resentful of the meeting outside the Coverciano gates between CT Prandelli and a group of fans. The technical commissioner explained that he did it only to receive a "Tapiro" for losing a golf match with Giancarlo Antognoni, the Della Valles contested the opportunity of a meeting with the ultras outside the official headquarters of the national team. In short, everything is tense, it takes very little to generate a hornet's nest of controversy. The Della Valles are not there, nor are the fans, especially after the departures of two idols like Mutu and Frey, and with Gilardino and Vargas always at the top of the list of possible departures. No, it's not an easy summer in Florence, and the arrivals of Lazzari, Munari and Kharja (agreement found with the formula of co-ownership for one and a half million euros, no signature) do not satisfy a fan base that fears another season of suffering.
