Inter Milan's Strategy: Keeping Stankovic and Pursuing Romero
Inter shut the door with a bang, not a polite click.
Brentford arrived with a €40 million proposal for Aleksandar Stankovic – a staggering figure for a 19-year-old who has yet to play a full season in Serie A. Inter didn’t blink. Neither did the player. Nor his family.
According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, all three parties lined up behind the same answer: thanks, but no.
Stankovic, the non-transferable deputy
Stankovic’s rise over the past year has been rapid and ruthless. At Club Brugge he wasn’t just a promising loanee; he was a driving force behind their Jupiler Pro League title, crowned Young Player of the Year in Belgium. That kind of season usually turns a youngster into a market asset. Inter have chosen to turn him into a cornerstone instead.
The key to that decision sits on Cristian Chivu’s tactics board.
Across pre-season, the Romanian coach has carved out a very specific niche for the Serbian youth international in his five-man midfield. Stankovic is being shaped as the primary understudy to Hakan Calhanoglu in the deep-lying playmaker role – the metronome position that underpins Inter’s entire structure.
Inter have spent the last two years searching for a reliable alternative there. Piotr Zielinski has been tested. Henrikh Mkhitaryan has dropped in. Even Nicolo Barella has been dragged deeper at times. None of those experiments fully convinced. Stankovic, by contrast, offers a natural profile for the job: secure on the ball, tactically disciplined, comfortable dictating tempo under pressure.
Inside the training ground, the trust in him is described as “unconditional”. That word matters. It means Chivu is not just protecting a talent; he is ring-fencing a strategic piece of his squad.
Keeping Stankovic gives Inter something they have often lacked in long, multi-competition seasons: genuine tactical insurance. If Calhanoglu rests, rotates or breaks down, the entire system does not have to change with him.
Jones on hold, puzzle in midfield
That firm stance, though, comes at a cost in the market.
Inter’s admiration for Curtis Jones has not cooled. Chivu is a big admirer of the Liverpool midfielder’s energy, press resistance and ability to operate across several roles. In a different squad context, Jones would be a priority signing, the kind of modern, multi-functional midfielder who can tilt a title race.
Right now, he is more of a luxury idea than an immediate necessity.
The central areas are congested. With Stankovic staying and other senior options already in place, any move for Jones would require an exit first. Inter’s midfield has become a sliding puzzle: every new piece demands another one moves out of the way.
So, while the club’s recruitment team keeps a watching brief on the Englishman, the real action has shifted a line back.
Romero, the missing piece at the back
At the heart of Inter’s summer planning sits a different kind of target: Cristian Romero.
The Argentine is seen inside the club as the final piece of an elite defensive unit, the kind of aggressive, front-foot defender who can drag a back line higher and set the tone in Champions League nights. Inter believe he brings leadership, bite, and a level of competitive nastiness they have occasionally lacked in Europe’s biggest games.
On the club-to-club front, the hard work appears done. President Giuseppe Marotta and sporting director Piero Ausilio have, by all accounts, reached an agreement with Tottenham Hotspur over the transfer fee. One of the major hurdles has already been cleared.
The stand-off now lies elsewhere.
Romero’s camp are pushing for a salary in the region of €7 million per season. Inter’s internal benchmark complicates that demand. Benjamin Pavard currently earns around €5 million, and stretching significantly beyond that for a new arrival risks unsettling a carefully managed wage structure.
This is where Inter’s ambition collides with their self-imposed financial discipline. They want Romero. They believe he completes the puzzle. But they also know that one oversized contract can quickly echo through a dressing room.
Patience, pressure and the late-window gamble
Taken together, Inter’s moves paint a clear picture of a club trying to walk a fine line.
They have refused to cash in on one of their most promising youngsters, even when €40 million sat on the table. They are keeping the door open for high-level additions such as Jones. They are pushing hard for a defender of Romero’s calibre.
At the same time, the wage ceiling, the crowded midfield and the Romero deadlock point to a familiar late-window scenario: something will have to give.
Strategic patience can look like strength in early August. By the end of the month, it often turns into a test of nerve. Inter are betting that they can keep their core intact, land their top targets and avoid a painful sale to balance the books.
If they pull it off, Stankovic anchoring the midfield as Calhanoglu’s heir and Romero snarling at the heart of the defence could define the next cycle at San Siro.
If they can’t, the decision not to take Brentford’s millions may be remembered as the moment they chose the pitch over the balance sheet – and raised the stakes for everything that follows this summer.
