Inter Brass Instructed to Reduce Burgeoning Payroll | OneFootball

Inter have handed out rich renewals left and right in the last couple of years, extending the contracts of basically every member of their squad. They might start being more cautious going forward. Oaktree would like for the payroll to decrease gradually, La Gazzetta dello Sport informs.

The Nerazzurri lead Serie A in that regard. Their wages bill amounts to €143 gross and €86.5M net, far more than Juventus (€108,4M), Milan (€104,2), and Napoli (€83M). It swelled up recently also because of Lautaro Martinez and Simone Inzaghi’s new contracts.

Yann Aurel Bisseck was the latest Inter player to obtain a pay bump. Most of the squad is tied to the team for the long haul, barring a handful of veterans. Selling some of the top-paid contributors would be an easy way to address the issue, but Oaktree hasn’t mandated that.

Instead, the strategy could be to target footballers with relatively modest personal demands. The Nerazzurri already started doing so last summer, acquiring Josep Martinez and Tomas Palacios, investing more in fees than salaries. The fund reportedly nixed the arrival of Mario Hermoso while they were seeking a left-footed defender, eventually bringing in the Argentine from Independiente Rivadavia.

Our Take on the Inter Payroll

Any side would benefit from that financially, but the fact that Oaktree has taken a cautious and long-term approach helps not to damage the quality of the squad. There are some areas of inefficiency that will be rectified soon enough. On the other hand, if that’s the plan, it might spell the end of their often-successful pursuit of major Bosman signings.