Inter President Beppe Marotta confirmed that Manuel Akanji will be permanently signed from Manchester City. He stated that while they respect Cesc Fabregas, Cristian Chivu was the club’s preferred candidate for the coaching role.
The Nerazzurri are celebrating their 21st Serie A title, a significant achievement with Marotta serving as President, marking his first Scudetto in this capacity since his previous role as general director when the club last won the trophy in 2024.
Marotta expressed his pride in Inter’s consistent success, noting, “This is a glorious club that is accustomed to winning, so it is important that we won the title three times in five years with three different coaches. It means we have created a winning sporting model.”
Inter’s Rationale for Appointing Chivu
Cristian Chivu was appointed after Simone Inzaghi decided to leave the club shortly after the Champions League Final, having already agreed to terms with Al-Hilal. Reports at the time indicated that Inter had initially approached Como for Cesc Fabregas but turned their attention to Chivu when they learned Fabregas was unavailable.
“Inzaghi made the decision to try something different, so we asked ourselves which name to propose,” Marotta explained. “We evaluated Chivu as the person who perfectly fit the profile. A coach is a crucial figure and, with all due respect for Fabregas, Chivu represents the ideal candidate because he knows what it means to play and win with Inter.”
Marotta further elaborated on the choice, stating, “He already had Serie A experience and took Parma to safety, so this is why we chose him. It’s true he didn’t have a lot of experience coaching, but we wanted to show courage with this choice. Now he is a winning coach who can stay at Inter for many years.”
Before his tenure at Parma, Chivu worked within the Inter youth academy, where he coached Francesco Pio Esposito. This experience proved invaluable, especially when the young player impressed during the Club World Cup.
“He asked us to keep Pio Esposito in the squad, another thing we are proud of,” Marotta added.
In addition to the coaching appointment, it has been confirmed that Akanji will be permanently acquired from Manchester City. A clause in his loan agreement activated the purchase option upon winning the Scudetto.
“When we negotiated the loan, we did add an option to buy apart from the Scudetto too. We have great respect for him as a player and a man, so he will continue to be in our squad,” concluded the Inter President.