According to Diario Sport, Alessandro Bastoni’s move to FC Barcelona is gaining momentum. The key factors in the negotiations lie in whether the centre-back himself is willing to leave Inter Milan and whether the Italian club is willing to sell one of its core players.
Selling Bastoni would bring substantial capital gains to Inter Milan, helping the club balance its books and ensuring sufficient liquidity for operations in the transfer market. For this reason, Inter Milan’s top management is increasingly inclined to put the defensive mainstay up for sale, viewing it as a strategic financial move for the future.
In 2024, Oaktree Capital Management officially took over Inter Milan. Over the past two years, the fund has maintained extreme restraint in investments, committed to cleaning up the club’s financial situation by maintaining a balance between transfer income and expenditure. Now, they urgently need a blockbuster sale to try to reshape the team’s competitive planning—specifically, to raise funds to sign at least two high-profile new signings—and Bastoni seems to be the “asset” they intend to use to achieve this goal.
According to Italian media Sportitalia, Inter Milan has almost fully amortized Bastoni’s book value—the player was signed by the club from Atalanta in 2017 for approximately €30 million. As of June this year, his current book value has become negligible, only €2.6 million. Therefore, if he can be sold for €60 million, Inter Milan will obtain a capital gain of more than €57 million, thus ensuring the club’s profitability in the current fiscal year.
Furthermore, the Italian club will also save approximately €11.5 million in annual player salary expenses. This dual effect will have a significant impact, freeing up ample operational space for the club under the framework of Financial Fair Play and enabling it to actively participate in the transfer market.
However, a major dilemma facing Inter Milan’s top management mainly focuses on the competitive level: Bastoni’s departure would mean the club losing a defensive linchpin—who is also one of the best centre-backs in world football today. In this internal game, financial considerations seem to be gradually taking precedence. Therefore, the decision to sell the player to the highest bidder seems to have been basically finalized. Inter Milan will benefit from an auction—with Premier League clubs also expected to participate—to maximize profits.
And this is when Bastoni plays a crucial role, with his sights firmly set on FC Barcelona. Despite receiving attractive offers from the Premier League, the Italian centre-back has never sought to leave Inter Milan before; however, now—if leaving has become a foregone conclusion—he hopes to have a say in his next destination.
His absolute first choice is FC Barcelona. Bastoni is currently only considering two options: either renew his contract with Inter Milan or move to FC Barcelona. Therefore, if he is ultimately sold—which seems highly likely at present—his next destination is already very clear.
For months, FC Barcelona has been well aware of Bastoni’s situation at Inter Milan. For this reason, Sporting Director Deco established contact with the player’s agent team as early as December last year, seizing the initiative ahead of potential competitors. FC Barcelona has clearly expressed its desire for him and has continued to make steady progress in the negotiations.
Now, the only remaining step is to reach an agreement with Inter Milan on the structure of the deal—which is likely to take the form of a “fixed cash transfer fee” plus “including a FC Barcelona player in the deal.” The gears of the transfer operation have already started turning, and all signs indicate that this deal will eventually be successfully concluded.
