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Drum rolls sounded in the ‘neroazurra’ half of the Lombardy capital as Inter let out Romelu Lukaku last summer. His star returned to Chelsea, to the spotlight of the attractive Premier League, and in his departure left a deep wound in a club that had just raised its first Scudetto in more than 10 years. The hasty goodbye of the Belgian striker, 24 goals in the last Serie A, suddenly cut off the illusion of a hobby historically devoted to sports tragedy; a crowd that had finally ended the dominance of Juventus and that, for the first time since José Mourinho left them, looked down on the Turinese and their illustrious neighbor, Milan.
The traumatic disagreement between Inter and Lukaku had immediate consequences, such as the resignation of the first team coach, Antonio Conte. The club had also sold Achraf and the impulsive Italian manager was furious after losing his two stars, saying publicly that the team was going to be less competitive and was therefore leaving. The epicenter of the earthquake pointed clearly in one direction, the box, where a young Asian man stoically endured the critical barrage. President Steven Zhang (China, 1991), whose father, billionaire Zhang Jindong owns 70% of Inter’s shares, was for the first time since taking office (2018) besieged by the press, the locker room and the fans. However, the fledgling businessman, along with the vice president, the interista legend Javier Zanetti, took advantage of the 115 million from the sale of the Belgian and the 60 million from the transfer of Hakimi to create a coherent squad with options to revalidate the Scudetto and play a good role in the Champions League.
Veterans like Dzeko, Darmian Y Calhanoglu; in addition to two exciting players like the lane Dumfries and the skilled Argentine attacker Joaquin Correa. On the other hand, the helm of the interista cadre was handed over to Simone Inzaghi, a young coach who had done good football and good campaigns in Lazio. And since the beginning of the season, the new Inter Milan has been working: win, play nice, leads Serie A (one point ahead of Milan and one game less) and is classified for the round of 16 of the European Cup in what will be an attractive tie against Liverpool.
In addition, last Thursday Inter lifted the first title of the season, the Italian Supercopa. In San Siro, Inzaghi’s men beat Juve thanks to a goal from Alexis Sánchez in the last minute of extra time. «This trophy is nothing more than the fruit of all the work of the coach and the players, and I am very satisfied with the result. This victory in such difficult times for football motivates us even more. And all this is due to the great work that we have all done, from the fans around the world to all those who work for the Club. They are the ones who have made this project possible, ”said an exuberant Steven Zhang after the meeting.
The young Chinese president, a football lover since his childhood, studied at the best business schools in the United States with the intention of inheriting the Suning trade group, one of the most important appliance companies in China, while also directing one of the biggest clubs in Europe. His management in the Lombard club, as he says, is transversal, it concerns “From marketing issues to the position of coffee machines”. Despite his young age, the pressure does not seem to intimidate him and from his hand, Inter dreams of ending another season with relevant titles in his decline.
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