Vice-president says no Manchester United talks with £70m striker yet
Inter Milan’s vice-president Javier Zanetti insists there are no talks underway between the Serie A giants and Premier League outfit Manchester United for striker Lautaro Martinez.
With Victor Osimhen too expensive, with the Red Devils unwilling to get involved with an energy-sapping saga over Harry Kane, and with Rasmus Hojlund, Goncalo Ramos and Randal Kolo Muani all expected to command fees in excess of £70 million, Lautaro Martinez is perhaps one name to keep an eye on over the next two months or so.
Inter Milan’s financial issues remain very well-publicised. The Nerazzuri are facing up to another summer in which offers for star players will be considered or, perhaps, encouraged.
Italian agent Mario Cenolli told TV Play earlier this month that Manchester United had ‘requested information’ about Martinez’s availability.
And while Zanetti insists that there are no negotiations currently ongoing between Inter and any other club, that could soon change as Erik ten Hag faces the unenviable task of landing an elite-level number nine on a budget.
“Lautaro is very happy at Inter,” Zanetti tells Calciomercato. “There is nothing with other clubs.”
Man United may turn to Inter Milan
Martinez, as is typical of Argentine forwards, combined tenacity with supreme technical ability. He scored 28 goals and set up 11 more last term; Simone Inzaghi’s Inter side reaching the Champions League final and winning the Coppa Italia.
Martinez’s ability to lead the line on his own or play alongside another centre-forward – he formed outstanding partnerships with Romelu Lukaku and Edin Dzeko in Milan – should appeal to Manchester United.
“I like Lautaro Martinez,” United legend Paul Scholes told BT Sport recently. “I think he’s Ten Hag’s type of player. (He will) run about, be aggressive, go against people.”
Inter Live report that Martinez is valued at £70 million. But at 25 and with a number of excellent seasons at Inter under his belt already, the former River Plate star would arguably be a ‘safer bet’ for £70 million than the relatively unproven Hojlund.