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Atletico Madrid are negotiating a deal to sign Mauro Icardi on loan from Inter Milan with the option to buy for €70 million, sources have told ESPN FC. The Argentina forward has been placed on the transfer market by Inter and saw his No. 9 shirt taken by new signing Romelu Lukaku. - ESPN fantasy: Sign up now!
- When does the transfer window close? He has been linked with moves to Serie A rivals Juventus and Napoli but, according to ESPN FC sources, would be delighted to join Atletico as he and his family are keen to move to Madrid. However, while Atletico want a loan with the option to make the deal permanent next summer, Inter would prefer Icardi to leave outright in this window. Atletico manager Diego Simeone is keen to bring in another forward and appeared close to signing Rodrigo from Valencia. Icardi, 26, moved to Spain from Argentina when he was nine and was part of the Barcelona academy from 2008 to 2011, so Simeone is confident the forward will have no issues adapting to life in the country. In February, Icardi was stripped of the captaincy at Inter, while comments made about his teammates by wife and agent Wanda Nara caused friction within the camp and sources have told ESPN FC that Simeone has made it clear he will not tolerate the same issues at Atletico. The Rojiblancos have until Sept. 2, when the European transfer window closes, to complete the deal. Inter declined to comment when contacted by ESPN FC. Icardi left Barcelona to join Sampdoria in 2011 before moving to Inter two years later and has twice been the top goalscorer in Serie A.
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