Inter Milan can finally break Juventus' dominance in Serie A. The club nicknamed the Nerazzurri has just confirmed itself to be the champion of the Serie A season 2020-2021.
Atalanta's 1-1 draw at home to Sassuolo on Sunday (2/5/2021) made Inter unable to be overtaken by its competitors. This success ended Inter's 11-year scudetto wait.
This title is also an achievement in itself for Suning Group as the majority owner of Inter's shares. They became the first foreign owners to win the title in Serie A.
Suning himself took over the majority of Inter's shares in 2016. Since then the Chinese corporation has poured out large funds to bring Inter back to glory.
Under Suning's command, Inter have been very active in the transfer market to increase the strength of their squad. They don't even hesitate to buy players at high prices.
Here are 10 of Inter's most expensive purchases during the Suning Group era.
Top 10 Most Expensive Purchases by Suning Group
10. Lautaro Martinez
Lautaro Martinez was bought by Inter Milan in 2018. The Nerazzurri had to pay 25 million euros to Racing Club for his services.
Lautaro showed a good performance while strengthening Inter. The 23-year-old player is now able to appear regularly and score goals diligently.
This season, the Argentine striker has scored 17 goals and nine assists in 44 matches. Lautaro can also play nicely with Romelu Lukaku.
9. Christian Eriksen
Christian Eriksen was bought by Inter Milan from Tottenham in the winter of 2020. The transfer from the Danish midfielder costs 27 million euros.
Eriksen had difficulty adapting to Italian football. But now he's got a place under Antonio Conte.
So far Eriksen has a record of 57 appearances and seven goals for Inter. In addition, he also contributed three assists.
8. Nicolo Barella
Nicolo Barella was originally on loan from Inter Milan in 2019 from Cagliari. The 24-year-old midfielder put in a brilliant performance at the Giuseppe Meazza.
Inter Milan finally took the decision to permanent Barella's status. Inter put out 27.7 million euros to make up for it.
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In this season, Barella has again become a mainstay for Antonio Conte's squad. The Italian player managed to lead the Nerazzurri to the Serie A.
7. Gabriel Barbosa
Inter Milan signed Gabriel Barbosa from Santos for a fee of 29.5 million euros. However, the Brazilian wonderkid failed to speak much in Italy.
The player nicknamed Gabigol only appeared 10 times in the Nerazzurri shirt. He was only able to create one goal in the 2016/17 Serie A season.
That failure made Gabigol finally dumped by Inter Milan. He currently plays at Flamengo after serving loan spells with Benfica and Santos.
6. Alessandro Bastoni
Alessandro Bastoni was brought in by Inter Milan in 2017 with a tag of 31 million euros from Atalanta. At that time, Bastoni was only 18 years old.
Even though he was bought, Bastoni did not immediately play at Inter. He was loaned back to Atalanta and also Parma.
Bastoni finally started playing at Inter following Antonio Conte's arrival. Now the Italian defender is one of Conte's mainstay players to guard the Nerazzurri back line.
5. Milan Skriniar
Milan Skriniar joined Inter Milan in 2017. The Slovak player was redeemed from Sampdoria for a dowry of 34 million euros.
Within a short period of time, Skriniar was an important player in the Nerazzurri defense. He has good abilities and can play consistently.
So far, Skriniar has made 165 appearances for Inter. He managed to score seven goals and four assists from these appearances.
4. Radja Nainggolan
After impressing with AS Roma, Radja Nainggolan moved to Inter Milan in 2018. Nainggolan came to Inter for a transfer fee of 38 million euros.
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However, injury problems prevented Nainggolan from showing his best form with the Nerazzurri. His name was even further marginalized after the arrival of Antonio Conte.
Nainggolan has only made 41 appearances for Inter so far. He is currently on loan at Cagliari.
3. Joao Mario
Inter Milan signed Joao Mario from Sporting CP in 2016. For 40 million euros, the Nerazzurri have high hopes for the Portuguese midfielder.
However, Joao Mario's achievements to date are still far from satisfactory. The 28-year-old failed to break into the Nerazzurri first team.
During his time at Inter, Joao Mario made only 69 appearances with 4 goals and 13 assists. He was briefly loaned to West Ham and Locomotive Moscow before returning to Sporting CP.
2. Achraf Hakimi
Achraf Hakim was recruited by Inter Milan from Real Madrid in the summer of 2020. It turned out that the Nerazzurri spent 40 million euros in vain to recruit Hakimi.
Hakimi immediately became an important player under Antonio Conte's tutelage. The Moroccan player is the main choice at right wing back in Conte's scheme.
From 33 matches in Serie A, Hakimi has scored seven goals and seven assists. This record makes him the most prolific full-back in the league.
1. Romelu Lukaku
Inter Milan redeemed Romelu Lukaku from Manchester United in 2019 for a dowry of 74 million euros. Lukaku made up for his high price with a brilliant performance.
The Belgian is at his best and is scoring goals to his heart's content. His sharpness led Inter to win the Serie A title this season.
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The 27-year-old has scored 61 goals and provided 15 assists in 92 appearances in all competitions. Lukaku is one of Inter's best buys.
Source: transfermarkt