Inter Milan have a midfield problem. Not a depth problem — a direction problem.
For weeks, the Curtis Jones pursuit dominated the conversation. Two bids, two rejections, Liverpool furious. It felt like the only story in Milan’s summer.
Then Nico Paz entered the frame. And suddenly the debate got a lot more interesting.
Reports now link Inter with a move for the Argentine playmaker after Real Madrid activated their buy-back clause from Como and made him available for around €60 million. According to Football Italia and Quotidiano Sportivo, if Inter move for Paz, the Jones pursuit likely ends. The two targets fill the same creative midfield role and, realistically, the same budget.
Inter have to choose. And the choice reveals something bigger than just who plays the number eight next season.
The Case for Jones — Don’t Dismiss It
Before anyone rushes toward Paz, the Jones argument deserves a fair hearing. Because it’s genuinely strong.
Curtis Jones is 25, Premier League-proven, and has shown exactly the profile Chivu’s midfield needs — progressive carrying, pressing intensity, comfort under pressure in tight spaces. He’s spent his entire career at Liverpool developing under high-level coaches in a system that demands technical quality and tactical discipline. That’s not a small thing.
He also reportedly wants this move badly. Federico Chiesa has spoken to him directly about life in Italy. Jones has resisted signing a contract extension at Anfield. For a player in the final year of his deal, that level of motivation matters — signed players who chose their club tend to hit the ground running.
The fee, assuming Frattesi’s exit unlocks the funds, lands somewhere in the €25-30 million range. That’s a realistic number for a player of his quality and age. Liverpool may be frustrated with Inter’s bids so far, but they also know Jones isn’t extending. That dynamic doesn’t disappear overnight.
Jones isn’t the lesser option. He’s the smarter one — if smart means lower risk and quicker impact.
The Case for Paz — And It’s Compelling
The Case for Paz — And It’s CompellingBut then look at what Nico Paz did this season. Thirteen goals and eight assists in 38 matches for Como. Twenty-one direct goal contributions in a Cesc Fàbregas side that punched well above its weight in Serie A. And he did it at 21 years old.
That’s not a player warming up for the big stage. That’s a player already on it.
Crucially, the transition argument that often bogs down cross-league signings doesn’t apply here. Paz already knows Serie A. He knows the intensity, the tactical demands, the referees. An Inter squad built around South American talent — Lautaro, Thuram’s chemistry with the group, the dressing room culture Dumfries himself described as “confrontational in the best way” — is an environment Paz would adapt to immediately.
The sell-on clause that Real Madrid hold is worth addressing directly. Yes, Madrid retain a 50% stake in any future profit on a sale. But if Paz stays at Inter for eight or nine years — which, at 21 with his trajectory, is entirely plausible — the clause becomes largely academic. You don’t buy a player of this quality worrying about what happens when you eventually sell him. You buy him because of what he gives you while he’s here.
The strongest argument for Paz isn’t the numbers. It’s the timeline. Jones gives you four or five good years. Paz could give you a decade.
What Supporters Are Getting Wrong About the Fee
The instant reaction to a €60 million price tag on a player from Como is sticker shock. That’s understandable.
But it’s also the wrong frame.
This is what elite, young, proven attacking midfielders cost in 2026. Not what they might cost. What they do cost. Nottingham Forest reportedly want upwards of €100 million for Elliot Anderson. West Ham were holding out for €80 million for Mateus Fernandes. The market has moved, whether Italian clubs like it or not.
Inter supporters who call €60m for Paz reckless need to ask themselves: what do they think Champions League contenders are spending on equivalent players? Because the answer isn’t €30 million. Teams with genuine European ambitions — the kind Inter are supposed to have — make this kind of investment. Not carelessly. But decisively, when the player is right.
Paz is right. The fee reflects his quality, not an inflated market moment.
The Oaktree Question — And the Chelsea Complication
The Oaktree Question — And the Chelsea ComplicationThis is where it gets interesting.
Chelsea have moved in hard for Marco Palestra — €55 million plus bonuses, and a salary offer well above what Inter tabled. According to Quotidiano Sportivo, Tuesday’s meeting between Inter’s management and Palestra’s agent didn’t go as planned. Chelsea are now the favourites.
If Palestra goes to London, Inter’s budget reopens. And Paz becomes the most logical place to spend it.
Marotta’s pitch to Oaktree writes itself: we won the double, now we go for the Champions League. Paz is 21, already proven in this league, and the kind of player who appreciates in value and always attracts serious offers. The sell-on clause is a minor inconvenience — not a reason to walk away from a potential decade-long asset.
The complication is that Inter aren’t alone anymore. Tottenham, Arsenal and Chelsea have all been alerted to Paz’s availability, with Dortmund and Leipzig also watching. This is becoming one of the most contested transfers of the window.
Marotta needs to move. The window where this is still Inter’s deal to lose is closing fast.
The Honest Prediction
Nobody knows how this ends. Any pundit telling you they do is guessing.
What is clear is that Inter need this profile of player in the squad. A box-to-box carrier who creates and scores, who changes the tempo of a match when he comes into possession. Neither Barella nor Çalhanoğlu quite fills that role the way Chivu appears to want it filled. Neither does anyone currently in the squad.
Whether that player ends up being Jones, Paz, or someone else entirely — Marotta would be wise to make one of them happen this summer. Because the window where Inter can compete at the very top is now, while this squad is intact, while the momentum from the double is real, and while Chivu’s authority is growing.
Letting this summer pass without solving the midfield problem would be the one decision that’s genuinely hard to defend.
What Happens Next
Watch for two signals in the coming weeks.
First: whether the Frattesi sale to Nottingham Forest closes, and at what price. Forest have reportedly been preparing a bid around €25 million while Inter hold out for €30 million. That gap closing — or not — tells you how much runway Inter have for their next move.
Second: whether Oaktree sanction funds beyond the Palestra budget. Any movement on that front is the clearest indication the Paz pursuit is serious at boardroom level, not just a sporting department conversation.
The uncomfortable truth for Inter is that this isn’t really Paz versus Jones. It’s ambition versus caution. One deal tells Europe Inter are building for the next decade. The other tells Europe they’re trying to maximize the current cycle. Neither choice is wrong—but the choice itself reveals exactly how Oaktree see the club’s future.
