Inter Milan Close to Signing Spence, Deal Worth €30 Million Plus Bonuses

According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, Inter Milan are accelerating their move for Djed Spence and are close to reaching an agreement with Tottenham. In addition, if Luis Enrique joins Roma, Inter could further strengthen their wing-back options.

Inter have made their decision: Tottenham and England international Djed Spence are on the verge of completing a transfer to the Nerazzurri. Over the past few hours, the two clubs have moved closer to an agreement, with the deal expected to be worth around €30 million plus bonuses.

Unless there is an unexpected setback, Spence will become the long-awaited replacement for Denzel Dumfries and the final missing piece in Cristian Chivu’s squad. Inter hope to complete the transfer before the start of the league season.

However, Spence may not be ready to feature immediately. Like his compatriot Stones, he has only recently returned to training after finishing his post-World Cup holiday.

Why did Inter choose Spence?
Inter never abandoned their pursuit of Spence. The club had been waiting for two conditions to be met: first, Tottenham needed to lower their initial asking price of around €40 million; second, head coach Roberto De Zerbi needed to approve the player’s departure.

Meanwhile, it is well known that Inter directors Beppe Marotta and Piero Ausilio had reopened talks for French winger Moussa Diaby.

However, the Diaby deal faced several obstacles. The first was the player’s very high salary demands. The second was the difficulty of negotiating with Al-Ittihad, who had also received an attractive offer from Bayer Leverkusen.

But Spence is not Inter’s “Plan B”. In fact, from both tactical and physical perspectives, he fits Inter’s needs better than Diaby.

In Chivu’s preferred 3-5-2 system with a back three, the defensive ability of the wing-backs is extremely important. Spence can compensate for some of the defensive weaknesses of Diouf, especially against stronger opponents.

Furthermore, Spence offers greater positional versatility. His best position is on the right flank due to his preferred foot, but he can also operate on the left. He showed his ability in that role during the World Cup when representing England.

To understand his speed, one only needs to recall his crucial recovery run against Julián Simeone during the World Cup semi-final between England and Argentina.

Spence is independent of the Luis Enrique deal
Regardless of what happens with Luis Enrique, Spence remains a signing Inter are determined to complete.

Roma are also preparing an important offer for Luis Enrique, reportedly between €25 million and €30 million. This is certainly a significant figure, and Marotta and Ausilio want to carefully evaluate the situation.

However, Luis Enrique is not considered a player who particularly attracts Gasperini. Inter plan to first determine how serious Roma’s interest really is before entering formal negotiations, especially considering the complications caused by last year’s Koné deal.

Clearly, if another wing-back leaves, Inter will need to address both squad depth and quality.

In short, signing only Spence will not be enough. He is viewed as a reinforcement to complete Inter’s wing rotation rather than the only addition needed.

Spence waiting for permission to move to Milan
Spence is eagerly waiting for the green light to travel to Milan. He is expected to sign a four-year contract with Inter.

He has already spoken with Stones, as the two players were teammates during England’s World Cup campaign in the United States a few weeks ago. Soon, this English defensive partnership could reunite at Inter’s Appiano Gentile training ground.

It could become Inter’s new “Double S” combination, bringing a strong English influence to the squad.

Romero ruled out for Inter, Pavard could stay
As for Cristian Romero, Inter have practically given up on the Argentine defender. The centre-back is now just one step away from completing a move to Atlético Madrid.

Inter have decided to focus their investment on wing players and potentially midfield reinforcements, such as Curtis Jones.

In the centre-back position, Benjamin Pavard has expressed his desire to remain at Inter to both Chivu and the club’s management, and he has been proving his commitment through his performances.

Pavard was one of Inter’s best players during their overseas tour and showed a highly positive attitude in every training session.

The French defender could become an unexpected reinforcement for the new season. Unless a convincing offer arrives in the coming weeks, Pavard is likely to continue his career at Inter.