Manchester United transfer news: Inter Milan using Javier Zanetti’s friendship with Jose Mourinho to get Matteo Darmian
Pair won Treble together with Nerazzurri in 2010 and Serie A club hope relationship can put them ahead of interested rivals
JAVIER ZANETTI will use his strong relationship with Jose Mourinho to lure Matteo Darmian to Inter Milan, according to reports in Italy.
The right-back is out of favour at Manchester United and has been heavily linked with a return to Serie A.
Juventus, Napoli and Roma have all been touted as possible suitors for the Italian.
And claim Inter are now in the driving seat.
Zanetti is captained the Nerazzurri to the Treble under Mourinho — and is now the club’s vice-president.
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Darmian started life at Old Trafford in excellent form after moving from Torino last summer.
He seemed a solid option at right-back until an injury to Luke Shaw forced Louis van Gaal to pit the 26-year-old on the left.
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His form began to dip and he struggled at Euro 2016 — missing the decisive penalty in the quarter-final defeat to Germany.
Darnian has barely featured under Mourinho this season.
Should he sign for the Nerazzurri, it would be interesting to see the fans' take, given he started his career across the city at AC Milan.
Zanetti himself was a legendary right-back for Inter, who played a staggering 858 games for the club — and is the second-highest appearance maker in Serie A history.
In 2010, he captained the club to their finest hour, where they won the league, cup and Champions League, from central midfield — two months before his 37th birthday.