Inter President Beppe Marotta has confirmed that Anan Khalaili failed his medical with the Italian authorities, so the €30m move from Union Saint-Gilloise is off. ‘The rules are very strict.’
The transfer had been agreed for €25m plus add-ons, and the Israel international underwent his regular club tests with no problems.
However, before joining an Italian club, he also needed to go through the strict CONI (Italian Olympic Committee) medical stress tests, and these flagged irregularities.
The player underwent another day of testing today, but although more were expected tomorrow, Inter President Marotta announced during this afternoon’s press conference that the decision had already been made.
Khalaili cannot play in Serie A
“We had negotiated the purchase of Khalaili, but he failed the medical tests, the CONI just informed us and I wanted to let you all know,” said Marotta.
“In Italy there are very strict rules on medical tests, so it is not a choice made by the club, we simply have to accept it, because this is about looking after the health of the player.
“When the CONI don’t give the certificate, he is not allowed to participate in any official sporting event in Italy.
“It’s sad, because we had carried on the negotiations with great effort, but now unfortunately we will have to think about an alternative.”
The stress tests largely focus on cardiology, so when Khalaili returns to Union Saint-Gilloise, he will have to deal with the medical staff there on any required treatment.
Italian rules are extremely strict, to the degree that players with an implanted defibrillator like Edoardo Bove and Christian Eriksen have been forced to continue their careers outside of Serie A.
Khalaili was set to be the replacement for Denzel Dumfries, who has joined Real Madrid for the €20m release clause in his contract.
“Dumfries preferred to conclude his career at a prestigious club like Real Madrid, so we had to find a substitute. Some of the fees going around are crazy, which make Italian football a mere spectator compared to the role we had in the past,” added Marotta.
They had been on the verge of an agreement worth €50m with Atalanta for Marco Palestra, only to be blown out of the water by a much bigger proposal from Chelsea.
