Report: Fans now putting up banners urging £30m player to stay, after he's linked with Tottenham move

By Sam Preston

Inter Milan fans have put up a banner inside San Siro urging Milan Skriniar to stay amid links with clubs including Tottenham.

Skriniar’s contract is set to expire at the end of the season and that makes him an even more enticing potential transfer prospect.

It has been reported that the defender would rather join Paris Saint-Germain, but Spurs boss Antonio Conte worked with him at Inter.

And Spurs do still need at least one elite central defender and Skriniar would appear to fit the bill if he can be convinced to join.

Inter fans put up banner asking Skriniar to stay

Inter needed extra time to beat Parma in the Coppa Italia last night and at the game, a banner was displayed urging the defender to stay.

It read: “Skriniar stay in Milan, you are our captain”, and they did the same before the weekend clash with Monza in Serie A.

If it comes down to purely a financial race for Skriniar, it is almost guaranteed that PSG would be able to offer more in terms of wages and a signing on fee.

That can make all the difference for a player if they are deciding to run their contract down, and also the French champions are basically guaranteed to be in the Champions League every season.

Spurs are going to be in a race for the top four which could go all the way to the end of the season, and has also been complicated by the rapid rise of Newcastle.

Inter chief Giuseppe Marotta was also asked directly about Skriniar’s future but said he had not put a deadline on any new contract offer.

As per CMW, he said of the £30 million man: “Is there is a deadline for the extension? Absolutely not.

“Also because these are recurring dynamics in all clubs now and I would no longer like to talk about contracts and transfers.

“Right now we remain focused on a difficult period. In January there are many games and there are many points available.

“We would like to win as much as possible. There is the right respect for every player, but we are more focused on the games.”

The fact that Inter fans are so keen to keep the central defender is an indicator of his quality, and Spurs need a long term, top class upgrade in that area of the pitch.

Conte has made it clear that he wants to be backed with top players in the transfer market if he commits his future to the club, and perhaps a deal similar to the one which brought Ivan Perisic to Spurs in the summer on a free transfer could be in the offing.