Mateo Kovacic has been on the bench much more than usual lately.
It has become pretty clear that Roberto Mancini has come to expect more than he is getting from the Croatian starlet, so, naturally, rumors have begun to circulate that Kova is garnering interest from some pretty major European clubs, including Barcelona, Arsenal, and Manchester United.
The player is currently valued at somewhere €20-25 million, so selling him to finance other ventures simply cannot be off the table for Inter. Now, is this something that will realistically happen? Probably not. After all, Kovacic did just sign a contract extension with Inter and has seen his form improve (if only marginally) since Mazzari's departure and Mancini's arrival.
But doubt does linger in the mind. Kovacic is currently competing for his preferred starting spot against Xherdan Shaqiri, who has admittedly not been incredible since his arrival in Milan, but who (arguably) has been more influential than Kovacic overall.
Inter are still exploring all sorts of options trying to find a way to balance the books before summer comes, and if Shaqiri proves to be the talent Inter need in the trequartista role and Kovacic is unable to adapt, then finances may force Inter's hand in getting rid of one of their youngest and most talented stars.