Benoit Cauet insists “there are no doubts Inter could sign Lionel Messi” from Barcelona. “Steven Zhang has the financial capabilities and the potential ambition.”

Former Nerazzurri President Massimo Moratti has been pushing the idea of a summer swoop and TNT in Argentina reported today that it was more than a theory, claiming negotiations with Messi’s entourage were already in full swing.

He will be 33 in June and into the final year of his contract with Barcelona, the club he joined in 2000.

“Of course Inter can sign Lionel Messi, there are no doubts that they could,” former Inter midfielder Cauet said in an Instagram live interview.

“President Steven Zhang has the financial capabilities and the potential ambition. He is a President who thinks big.”

Inter are on the verge of exiting their Financial Fair Play limitations, so could in theory spend more going forward.

They already paid €65m plus bonuses to get Romelu Lukaku from Manchester United and could even use Lautaro Martinez as part of an exchange for Messi.