Winning the Euros, the Italy national team put a lot of talent on display, as Roberto Mancini used the vast majority of his squad throughout the tournament, rotating often to keep his squad as fresh as possible.
There were regular starters, however, among which was Nicolò Barella, who is one of the star midfielders for both Inter and his country.
His performances at the heart of Mancini’s plans were often lauded, which caught the eye of Liverpool.
With a need to replace Georginio Wijnaldum, who signed for Paris Saint-Germain on a free, Jürgen Klopp will be trying to find a player who can both attack and defend in true box to box form, which Barella does on a weekly basis.
It’s part of what makes him so special, and Inter know that, which is why any asking price would be high.
They believe he is one of the Italy squad who ‘risks leaving [Serie A]’, as ‘his performances and energy have greatly affected Premier League clubs, in particular Liverpool, who would be ready to present an offer of €70m’.
It’s made very clear that ‘such a figure would put Inter in crisis’, because while they have promised Simone Inzaghi they wouldn’t sell any more big names after Achraf Hakimi, a bid of that amount would make any choice ‘really complicated’.
The ball is in Liverpool’s court, and we’ll have to see how deep the Reds want to dig in their pockets to find Wijnaldum’s replacement.
