Inter Take an Interest in Juventus Castoff, Ponder Swap | OneFootball

The second attempt by Inter to onboard Moussa Diaby in the span of a few months might be short-lived too, and they inquired about Nicolas Gonzalez, who’s technically at Juventus but in limbo after Atletico Madrid didn’t pick up their option to buy, Gianluca Di Marzio reports.

The Frenchman was a complex target to begin with because of his lofty wages. The Nerazzurri need help from Al-Ittihad and would prefer to include Kristjan Asllani to limit the disbursement. The deal doesn’t have a lot of momentum. Furthermore, Bayer Leverkusen have joined the race and are pushing.

Inter expressed interest in Diaby but didn’t initiate a real negotiation, while intermediaries suggested tracking Gonzalez. They are mulling over whether to proceed or not. He did okay in Spain, scoring 5 goals in 24 appearances and handling multiple roles amid a few small muscular injuries.

According to Fabrizio Romano (via Goal), Juventus will only let him go permanently this time around. Atletico Madrid passed on a €30M clause, believing they could get better terms afterward. Per La Gazzetta dello Sport, he doesn’t want to stay in Turin. A swap deal with Davide Frattesi, who’s also on his way out, could be a tangible possibility. They have comparable wages and valuations.

Our Take on Inter, Diaby, and Gonzalez

They have suddenly started focusing on very offensive-minded options, perhaps signaling that they might not stop at one acquisition to balance things out. Their Argentinian connection is well-known. A straight-up trade with Juventus could be beneficial for both and could have legs if the two sides acted reasonably, but Frattesi wouldn’t find himself in a much better situation competition-wise.