Former Torino sporting director Gianluca Petrachi revealed that Inter star Lautaro Martinez was once just a step away from heading to Turin.
Lautaro emerged as a rising star during his time with Racing Club, scoring 27 goals in 62 games, and he was wanted by a number of European clubs including Atletico Madrid before he ultimately signed for the Nerazzurri in July 2018.
Lautaro has grown into one of the best strikers in world football during his last six years with Inter and this season he’s played a leading role in their charge to the Scudetto, scoring 22 goals in 23 league matches this term, proving himself a leader on the pitch.
Speaking to TV Play via Calciomercato.com, sporting director Petrachi discussed Torino’s attempts to sign Lautaro before he ultimately joined Inter in July 2018.
“We had negotiated for him when I was at Torino, for an agreement of around €7m with Racing. He had Zarate’s brother, a former Lazio player, as his agent, and they were pushing for €3m in fees, something we never paid anyone at Toro.
“The agent knew he had a jewel in his hands and therefore played his own game by asking for a lot of money. It was a shame not to be able to get him, but I tried to.”
Lautaro is currently in the process of negotiating a new contract with Inter and has an estimated market value of well over €100m.