According to the Italian newspaper "La Gazzetta dello Sport", Real Madrid is increasingly inclined to accept an offer and sell young player Nico Paz to Inter Milan. This decision is based on the team's personnel structure and the player's personal preferences, with a surprising price tag of 25 million euros.
This season, Argentine youngster Nico Paz was sold by Real Madrid to Serie A newcomer Como for a low price of 6 million euros. After transferring to Serie A, Paz performed outstandingly, scoring 2 goals and providing 3 assists in 16 games, becoming the core of the team's tactics. Thanks to his excellent performance, Como successfully occupied the mid-table position in Serie A with hopes of avoiding relegation.
Paz himself also made it into the Argentine national team and received playing opportunities. It is worth mentioning that in his limited time with the national team, he managed to get 1 assist, and the recipient of that assist was none other than football legend Lionel Messi, helping him complete a hat-trick. After the game, Messi highly praised this young talent, believing that he has the potential to carry the future of Argentina.
It is precisely because of such remarkable performances on the field that Paz has gained the favor of Serie A giants Inter Milan. The club's general manager, Ausilio, and vice-chairman, Zanetti, have been dispatched to watch Paz's matches on-site, listing him as an important transfer target.
However, for Inter Milan, the real obstacle to acquiring Paz comes from Real Madrid. Although his ownership has already transferred to Como, Real Madrid still retains the right of first refusal and 50% of the player's transfer revenue. For Paz, whose market value has now soared to 20 million euros, Real Madrid will not give up these rights and allow Como and Inter Milan to transact freely.
The complex transfer rights present two major difficulties for Inter Milan in acquiring Paz.
First: Inter Milan's 25 million euro purchase limit.
Previously, after being taken over by Oaktree Capital Management, Inter Milan had a transfer budget limit of 25 million euros. This price may be enough to sway newly promoted Como, but it is unlikely to impress Real Madrid, who is expected to value Paz at between 35 to 40 million euros.
Second: Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti's fondness for Paz.
In fact, during the summer transfer window, if Paz did not believe he could get sufficient opportunities at Real Madrid and insisted on leaving, Ancelotti would not have wanted to sell this 20-year-old talented new star. After all, in the star-studded front line of Real Madrid, Paz still managed to get 8 appearances under Ancelotti, which is quite remarkable for a 19-year-old player who had only played in the youth leagues before. This also shows Ancelotti's affection for him.
La Gazzetta dello Sport reported that the reason why Inter Milan has made Real Madrid inclined to sell Paz is that although their offer is only 25 million euros, they have provided Real Madrid with a certain percentage of secondary transfer fees and priority matching rights. This means that in the future, if Paz wants to transfer to any team, Real Madrid only needs to match the opponent's offer to take him back. Even if Real Madrid refuses to match, they can still receive transfer fee shares exceeding 25 million euros.
Furthermore, Ancelotti's future at Real Madrid is uncertain. At the beginning of this season, due to Mbappe's integration issues after joining, the team's performance declined, and Real Madrid almost sacked Ancelotti. Although Real Madrid's performance has since rebounded, the club's management has also begun to consider new candidates. After all, the 65-year-old Ancelotti, despite his rich experience, is constrained by his age and shows signs of lagging behind the times in terms of thinking and tactical innovation. They are looking to update their long-term head coach choice with Bayer Leverkusen's coach Xabi Alonso. Without Ancelotti's support, Paz, who was originally unwilling to start from the bench among the star-studded lineup at Real Madrid, is even less willing to return to the Bernabeu.
La Gazzetta dello Sport believes that according to the style of Inter Milan's chairman, Marotta, they are likely to start negotiations with Paz in advance to ensure that he can appear on the grass of the San Siro next season. Perhaps soon, we will see news of the two clubs reaching an agreement.