TEMPTATION The Inter president is studying a plan that does not expire.
Messi: now Moratti works to make it a reality.
Involving new sponsors to bring him to Inter.

Lionel Messi to Inter is no longer just a joke, but a working hypothesis. Moratti said yesterday: "To get him is very difficult". Like it was tearing Ronaldo from Barcelona in 1997, a move that was achieved after a long courtship begun in May 1995, when the Brazilian who played for PSV Eindhoven was not yet 19 and met the President together with his manager Giovanni Branchini.

Moratti has chased Messi for years, taken by Barcelona on December 14, 2000, when the then sporting director Rexach made him sign the contract in a café in which the club agreed to even pay his care, after he was diagnosed with a medical problem. Messi has a termination clause of 250 million and a contract that expires in 2016.

The 'treble' of 2010 has created huge interest in Inter and its brand. That means even more attention from potential sponsors, especially foreigners. Moratti has verified that in person from the trips he has made over the past two months. In the coming months, even through the Club World Cup in Abu Dhabi, the President will verify if the attempt to wrest Messi from Barcelona can be transformed into an investment with significant returns, intended to give a new dimension to the club, increasing its popularity in the world.

It would be away to repeat another historic moment, the negotiation for Ronaldo which Moratti still considers the best investment of his 15 years at the top. For this it is now necessary to consolidate the budget, paving the way for a fresh start that includes a renewal of the team. To set a date for the assault on Messi, at the moment, would not be consistent with the transaction, which is only in the planning stage and with a player that in 2012 will only be 25 years old.