Icardi stripped of Inter Milan captaincy
MILAN: Mauro Icardi has been stripped of the Inter Milan captaincy in favour of goalkeeper Samir Handanovic, the Italian club announced yesterday. The switch comes as Icardi, 25, has yet to sign a new contract amid protracted negotiations between the club and his wife Wanda Nara, who also acts as his agent.
“The new captain of the team is Samir Handanovic,” the Serie A outfit tweeted. Inter are third in Serie A, 20 points behind champions Juventus, and five points ahead of city rivals AC Milan in fourth. Luciano Spalletti’s side returned to winning ways last weekend against Parma having taken just one point from their three previous Serie A games.
Spalletti had after the game demanded a swift conclusion to the contract negotiations. The Chinese-owned club crashed out of the Champions League and travel to Rapid Vienna for their Europe League round of 32, first-leg game today. Icardi joined Inter in 2013 from Sampdoria, while Handanovic, 34, arrived in 2012 from Udinese. —AFP