The Corriere della Sera newspaper insists Saudi investment fund PIF, fresh from purchasing Newcastle United, had been interested in an Inter takeover, but that is no longer a priority.
There had been reports in Libero newspaper of talks at an advanced stage between current owners Suning and the Saudi fund.
They paid €350m to buy 80 per cent of Newcastle United shares from Mike Ashley and Inter would cost closer to €1bn.
In an updated report, the Corriere della Sera notes that there had indeed been negotiations with PIF, but these were several months ago.
In the meantime, a great deal has changed, because Suning brought in a €275m loan from Oaktree, while PIF completed the takeover of Newcastle United, which at the time had been blocked by the Premier League due to a TV rights dispute.
Having said that, the Corriere della Sera also notes that Suning are not out of the woods yet, as record losses continue to pile up and they have three years to repay that Oaktree loan at 10 per cent interest.
The issue could therefore be discussed again soon, although right now Inter do not represent a priority for PIF.
It is suggested Suning want to keep hold of Inter at least until the new stadium is given the go-ahead, but with Italian red tape, that could be several years away.
Niente #Inter per #Pif al momento. E #Suning vuole continuare alla guida della Beneamata: pronti i prolungamenti per #Marotta, #Ausilio e #Antonello
⚫️🔵https://t.co/dhnlpa79Wv— FcInterNews.it (@FcInterNewsit) October 13, 2021
I cant stand Suning group. Like just sell the club already. They’re ruining Inter by getting rid of star players and changing the logo which they probably wasted money with rebranding. Its ridiculous, I wish they would get a Saudi owner asap! #ZHANGOUT
What amuses me is that more people want to see Syning gone than wanted Erik Thohir gone. Do you guys remember Alvarz, Perira, Gargano, Campanagero, Schilotto etc. Records will show Inter won Seria A under Suning.
To be honest, Suning got a lot of flak this summer for selling Lukaku and Hakimi. That was unfortunate but sadly necessary. Keep in mind that Suning’s troubles are not really of their own doing – more to do with the pandemic and changing dynamics in their home market of China. Say what you will, but Suning’s time with Inter has actually been relatively successful and positive. They have had good intentions, have invested when and where they can, and for the most part have put out a very competitive team. They also won the Scudetto, which is no small thing. Zhang has also seemed to be quite present in Milan for the most part and seems to genuinely care about the success of the team(Covid notwithstanding), which is very different from a lot of foreign owners in Europe. They have also been wise to give the keys to the market to Marotta. All in all, I think history will be more kind to the Suning ownership of Inter than people realize.
Suning were smart enough to hire and keep Marotta, the mastermind behind Inter`s success. I don`t want them out, I just wish they can keep funding like before the pandemic hit and able to repay that high-interest loan without sacrificing more starters. Hakimi is the most painful sale I had to witness in all these decades supporting the club.