Agent Confirms Nerazzurri Interest in Keita Baldé

Now that the curtains have closed on Euro 2020, the transfer market is in full swing. The latest name linked with a move to Appiano is a familiar one. According to his agent Federico Pastorello (about as trustworthy a source as any for silly season), Inter is interested in bringing Keita Baldé back to the San Siro.

Via Football Italia

Pastorello: “I am here for Keita. We are evaluating his potential return to Inter, as Simone Inzaghi knows him very well. It depends on the players that leave the club as well.”

The 26-year-old is currently at Monaco but has a contract expiring in 2022. He failed to settle into the French club since a €30 million move from Lazio in 2017, spending two of the four seasons since on loan in Italy.

Inter offered Baldé a home for the 18/19 campaign and he repaid the Nerazzurri with 5 goals and 2 assists in 25 appearances. After similarly mediocre numbers for Monaco in the 19/20 season, he was back on the loan block last year. Sampdoria was the team to pick him up this time and he tallied 7 goals and 2 assists in 1,193 minutes at the Luigi Ferraris.

Photo by Paolo Rattini/Getty Images

Baldé did manage to score in both times Inter came up against the Blucerchiati and now it sounds like Inter could bring Baldé back into the fold. He has experience with Simone Inzaghi from his time at Lazio, where he played the best football of his career. And while his recent years aren’t anything to write home about, Baldé is only 26 and has a few years of his “prime” still to come. Inter wouldn’t be able to loan the Senegalese unless he signs an extension with Monaco, but Les Monégasques aren’t in a position to demand much of a transfer fee either.

Inter could do worse than Baldé for a fourth striker but it’s hard to see exactly where he fits into the Nerazzurri’s rotation. He’s much more of a Lautaro/Sanchez type player than Lukaku, who hasn’t had a reliable backup since he joined Inter. Perhaps Pastorello’s comment that “it depends on the players that leave the club as well,” means Sanchez or Andrea Pinamonti are on their way out, and Baldé would be a direct replacement.

What do you think? Is Baldé worth pursuing or should Inter try to find a Lukaku backup instead?