Mayor of Milan Giuseppe Sala assures he still believes a new San Siro stadium should be built, but ‘wants guarantees' on how Inter will be run in future. 'The city lives on.'
The row erupted earlier this week when Sala announced he was putting the new stadium project on hold due to his uncertainty over Inter’s future, as the club is currently seeking new investors.
Mayor of Milan Giuseppe Sala assures he still believes a new San Siro stadium should be built, but ‘wants guarantees' on how Inter will be run in future. 'The city lives on.'
The row erupted earlier this week when Sala announced he was putting the new stadium project on hold due to his uncertainty over Inter’s future, as the club is currently seeking new investors.
This infuriated Inter owners Suning, who released a statement blasting his “disrespectful and insulting” comments.
Now the Mayor has spoken to the Gazzetta dello Sport about the situation, which also involves Inter’s city rivals and stadium co-hosts Milan.
“I believe the stadium should be built, I haven’t changed my mind. I confirm, a new San Siro is useful for the city,” noted Sala.
“However, there is another issue and it needs to be clarified. The stadium itself is less than half the construction project proposed by Inter and Milan for the area.”
The inclusion of office buildings and retail spaces has also been a huge problem for the Stadio della Roma project.
“Is it really so illogical to want to know who we’ll be relying on when completely regenerating a neighbourhood over several years?
“I have not had any official communication from Inter with regards to negotiations over the future of the club. However, I know more or less everyone in Italian and international finance, so I am aware of what is happening and obviously need to take a prudent approach.
“I was never worried about the Zhang family, nor the Elliott group who run Milan. I wouldn’t have problems if Inter weren’t openly in takeover negotiations, but seeing as they are, I need to cover all the bases.
“Those who are evaluating whether to invest in Inter are trying to understand if we are still interested in building the stadium and I always said we are in favour. My worry is the project itself, because this is a partnership and I’d like to know who my partner will be in future.”
Suning have repeatedly assured Inter’s finances are not at risk, but they have made vast cutbacks in various levels of the company business and sold 25 per cent of their retail arm.
“I don’t want to get into details on Inter’s debt situation, but it’s no secret that at this moment investment from China in some sectors such as football is finding difficulty. I just want information.
“If Inter come to me and say the Suning investment will continue, I’ll reactivate the dossier. If they bring me guarantees that whoever replaces them will continue the investment, then that’s fine too.”
Inter’s statement included the phrase this club ‘existed before Mayor Sala and will continue to exist when his mandate ends.’
“Naturally, the role of Mayor is always temporary, but the city lives on and I have to guarantee the future for this city, which has lasted for 26 Centuries.
“I hope they are not annoyed with me, seeing as I am an Inter fan…”