Inter Milan are keen on renewing the contract of longtime goalkeeper Samir Handanovic. In quotes reported by Fabrizio Romano, the club’s CEO for sport, Beppe Marotta, made it clear saying they want to extend Handanovic’s deal as soon as possible. The 37-year-old Slovenian international remains a crucial part of Inter’s squad.
Inter Milan Looking to Extend Samir Handanovic Contract
Handanovic: Inter’s Number One
Handanovic has been at Inter since 2012. He knows the club inside out and is consistently one of the team’s top-performing players. He originally joined Inter to replace legendary goalkeeper Julio Cesar. Those were massive shoes to fill, but Handanovic did it with excellence. For the large majority of his Inter career, he rivaled Juventus’ Gianluigi Buffon as the top goalkeeper in all of Italy.
Inter did have a rough patch of seasons during Handanovic’s tenure but to no fault of his own. After rebuilding the squad, Inter are back in the limelight. They are the reigning Serie A champions. More than that, they have a legitimate chance to win the league once again in a heated battle with city rivals AC Milan as well as Napoli. Inter remain alive in the Champions League as well, although are losing 2-0 to Liverpool after their first-leg clash in the round of 16.
Marotta is quoted as saying: “We want to extend both Samir Handanovic and Ivan Perisic contracts. It’s something we want to do as soon as possible, they’re showing their value every single day.”
This contract renewal is interesting, however, due to Inter’s clear interest in Ajax goalkeeper Andre Onana. In short, it seems like Inter’s pursuit of Onana as a free agent this summer is official. Onana is 25-years-old, meaning Inter view him as Handanovic’s successor. Should Handanovic renew, it will be interesting to see who Inter’s starting goalkeeper is next season. Onana is quite talented and Inter would like to see him grow and succeed as soon as possible. Handanovic remains one of the top goalkeepers in Italy, so relegating him to a back-up role will be tough.
Whatever the decision may be, it’s clear that Inter and Handanovic have a good relationship, and all successful clubs have a slew of veterans on the squad.
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