MILAN: Inter Milan end their triumphant Serie A season at Verona on Sunday night in a state of limbo after the champions were taken over by US investment fund Oaktree.
Officially crowned kings of Italy last weekend after winning the Scudetto with five games to spare, Inter's future has been in the balance for months due to the 395 million-euro ($428 million) debt with Oaktree that was hanging over the heads of outgoing owners Suning.
And outgoing president Steven Zhang's angry statement at the weekend, in which he accused Oaktree of "jeopardising" Inter's financial stability, made it clear that a change of ownership was in the offing.
What happens next is unsure, although Oaktree confirmed that Inter would move ahead with the current personnel who have helped take the club to the top.
That means the heads of sporting operations Giuseppe Marotta and Piero Ausilio, and coach Simone Inzaghi, staying on, while a fire sale of players is very unlikely.
However Oaktree said that there would be "an initial focus on operational and financial stability", suggesting a period of belt-tightening just as a series of contract extensions, including that of captain Lautaro Martinez, are due to be discussed.
Argentina forward Martinez, whose current deal expires in 2026, told the Gazzetta Dello Sport on Tuesday he was expecting and wanted to sign a new deal next week but admitted "the situation with the club could delay everything".
"Let's wait and see, I don't know what's going to happen between now and next week but we don't have any problems," Lautaro said.
Inter's new ownership will be the big story from the final weekend of the season, which will be low on drama with most of the big questions settled.
The five teams taking part in the Champions League are already decided, with the only question being whether Atalanta can finish higher than fifth with their game in hand against Fiorentina being played a week on Sunday.
Atalanta, who host Torino, are two points behind Bologna and Juventus who sit in third and fourth respectively ahead of their final fixtures with Genoa and Monza.
Should Gian Piero Gasperini's side win the Europa League on Wednesday night and finish the season in fifth Roma would be handed a spot in Europe's top club competition.
Daniele De Rossi's Roma have nothing to play for as they are guaranteed to finish sixth, but they also have Empoli's Serie A fate in their hands.
Roma travel to Tuscany where a win would make 18th-placed Empoli the third and final team to be relegated to Serie B.
Empoli are just inside the drop zone, one point below Udinese and two from Frosinone with that pair also facing off at the same time on Sunday.
Should the teams in 17th and 18th place finish level on points there will be a two-legged play-off to decide which side joins Sassuolo and Salernitana in the second tier. — AFP
Player to watch: Olivier Giroud France's all-time top scorer will say goodbye to Milan fans at the San Siro on Saturday is his last match with the seven-time European champions before finishing his club career at Los Angeles FC.
Giroud signed for Milan from Chelsea in the summer of 2021 and became an instant hit with supporters, scoring twice on his home debut and netting key goals as he won the Serie A title in his first season in Italy.
The 37-year-old, a World Cup winner with Les Bleus in 2018, has scored 48 goals in all competitions for Milan including 16 this season.
Fixtures (times GMT) on Thursday
Cagliari v Fiorentina (18:45)
Friday
Genoa v Bologna (18:45)
Saturday
Juventus v Monza (16:00), AC Milan v Salernitana (18:45)
Sunday
Atalanta v Torino, Napoli v Lecce (both 16:00), Empoli v Roma, Frosinone v Udinese, Lazio v Sassuolo, Verona v Inter Milan (18:45)
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