Inter Milan can sign a midfielder during the January transfer window, but only if one of them leaves. This is according to the report of the Milanese newspaper Le Sport today, from FCINTER1908. At the moment, Inter Milan have seven senior midfielders in their squad, not counting fringe player Lucien Agume.
There are preferred threesomes. Since last season, Niccolò Barella, Henrik Mkhitaryan and Hakan Calhanoglu have proven to be a very balanced squad and have started most of Inter's games. Italy's Davide Frattesi, meanwhile, has yet to really establish himself as a starter since his move from Sassuolo in the summer. Christian Asllani has a similar story. Albanians had chances, and they were young.
This is not the case with David Klassen. The 30-year-old arrived on a free transfer from Ajax on the final day of the summer transfer window. Inter Milan signed Klaassen as a stopgap measure to strengthen their core options. This is more or less the same reason that the Nerazzurri kept Stefano Sensi in the squad. The 28-year-old stayed in the summer, despite being linked to a transfer and has rarely played so far this season.
Of course, the chances of Barrera, Mkhitaryan or Calhanoglu leaving next month are close to zero. Inter Milan don't want to lose these types of players in the race for the title. The same goes for Flatsi. The Italian has only been with the club for six months and will almost certainly make a difference in the second half of the season. Christian Asllani looks likely to stay rather than leave on loan.
But for players like Sensi and Klaassen, it's a little different. So far, the two have basically just made up the numbers. According to Le Milano, Inter could look for a replacement if one of them leaves.