Inter have set sights on Roberto Firmino, whose contract with Liverpool runs out in June. Their interest is directly related to the future of Romelu Lukaku. The Belgian will have to show better and be healthier in the second half of the season for them to extend his loan spell, La Gazzetta dello Sport relays.
The two players figure to have similar costs. The Nerazzurri paid €20M to have the center-forward this season, considering an €8M fee and the percentage of his salary they cover. The Brazilian attacker currently earns €10M. However, if they managed to negotiate it down to about €8M net per year, the gross sum would be lower than usual since they would benefit from fiscal advantages for foreigners moving to Italy.
Inter could even spend a little less annually for Firmino than for Lukaku. The playing time of the Liverpool ace has taken a hit in the last campaign and a half due to injuries and the acquisitions of Darwin Nunez, Diogo Jota, and Cody Gakpo. Jurgen Klopp would be happy to keep him, but the 31-year-old will mull his options.
The Nerazzurri have been chasing after Marcus Thuram, who’s in the same contractual situation. He’s likely to stay at Borussia Moenchengladbach in January, but Bayern Munich are in the lead to capture him on a Bosman move.
Our Take on Inter and Firmino
Chasing after veteran free agents that are out of contract is par for the course for La Beneamata, but chances are they’ll be priced out on his wages by other sides. It doesn’t hurt to try, though.
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