Achraf Hakimi is generating plenty of transfer talk heading towards the summer window, with Arsenal and Chelsea said to be among his suitors, but the Inter defender’s agent says no move has been considered as yet.
The highly-rated 22-year-old only moved to San Siro in the summer of 2020, with a permanent switch away from Real Madrid secured on the back of a productive loan spell at Borussia Dortmund.
A return to Santiago Bernabeu has also been mooted, with Inter’s financial troubles reportedly forcing them to consider sales, but focus in Milan is being locked on the present and a Serie A title bid.
What has been said?
Hakimi’s representative, Alejandro Camano, has told Calciomercato of the speculation surrounding his client: “As of today, he is very happy to play for such an important club. I don’t know what the future holds, but I say today that Hakimi is happy and his team is Inter.
“The objective is to win the Scudetto. After that, Inter’s situation at the club level is complicated, but I repeat: we are very happy here in football terms.
“He has a five-year contract, we signed because we were so confident of Inter’s project. We’ll see what happens in future, but this is a very important step in his career.
“We certainly don’t intend on leaving the team in such a delicate situation.”
Why is Hakimi in demand?
Getty / Goal
The Morocco international saw his stock soar while spending two seasons on loan at Bundesliga giants Dortmund.
He took in 73 appearances for BVB, registering 12 goals and 17 assists as a reputation was established as one of the most productive right-backs in world football.
Impressive standards have been maintained at Inter, with a further six goals and five assists recorded, allowing his valuation to rise further.
Premier League suitors are said to be mulling over big-money raids but freeing Hakimi from a contract that is due to run until 2025 will not be easy, or cheap.
How much did Inter pay for Hakimi?
The deal which took a Madrid-born star away from his roots at Real was worth at initial €40 million (£35m/$47m), with a further €5m due if certain targets are hit.
To walk away from that deal after 12 months would come as a surprise, especially as Inter worked so hard to land a long-standing target.
Camano added: “The player himself made the decision to go to Inter.
“Already two or three years ago, Piero Ausilio had spoken to us about the opportunity of bringing him to Milan.
“After his spell at Borussia Dortmund, that interest was renewed and Hakimi decided to come to Inter.”
.jpg?auto=webp&format=pjpg&width=640&quality=60)
.jpg?auto=webp&format=pjpg&width=640&quality=60)