According to Express, Inter Milan are willing to offer Mauro Icardi and use him as a sweetener to lower the fee for Manchester United star Romelu Lukaku. The Italian giants need to offload Icardi to make way for a new signing this summer amid reports linking them with a move for Lukaku this summer.
It was initially believed that Inter would pay £62 million to sign Lukaku on a five-year deal. But, they are now prepared to allow United to sign Icardi while paying a considerably lower fee for the Belgian striker. But, will Icardi be a smart option for the Red Devils?
Icardi’s productive yet controversial spell at Inter
Icardi joined Inter from Sampdoria back in 2013 for a fee of just £11.7 million. The Argentine international enjoyed a promising debut campaign at San Siro, scoring nine goals in only 22 matches. And since then, he has become a vital part of the Inter Milan attack, having scored a whopping 124 goals in just 219 games across all competitions.
However, that was until the start of this year, when the former Sampdoria forward was stripped of the captaincy, mainly due to his off-field controversies with the club. He never enjoyed a good relationship with the fans after his autobiography incident back in 2016 while his wife, and agent, Wanda Nara hasn’t helped his cause either.
Nara is the ex-wife of Icardi’s former friend Maxi Lopez. So essentially, he doesn’t share a good relationship with his compatriot and even Lionel Messi.
Furthermore, according to sources, even Inter Milan asked Icardi to change his agent, but he refused. And on January, after returning late from winter break, the Argentine was finally relieved of his role as club captain and was fined 100,000 euros. He was also left out of the squad for a couple of matches.
After that, Icardi never really managed to return to his scoring form, notably netting just two league goals since the turn of the year.
Is Icardi a good option for Manchester United?
Icardi is undoubtedly one of the most lethal strikers in Europe, having scored more than 20 league goals in three of his last four seasons, prior to the 2018/19 campaign in Serie A. He could potentially build a solid offensive partnership with Marcus Rashford in United’s 4-1-3-2.
But, at the same time, his questionable attitude, coupled with his impulsive wife-agent, could disrupt the harmony of the Manchester United camp that desperately needs some positivity after a turbulent campaign. The Red Devils are currently undergoing a transition, where they need players who can lead the team both on and off the pitch. Icardi, in that regard, is certainly not best fit for the job.
