Inter CEO Giuseppe Marotta Says Chelsea Wouldn't Negotiate for Olivier Giroud

Inter Milan CEO Giuseppe Marotta has said the Italians tried to land Chelsea forward Olivier Giroud during the January transfer window but that the Blues were not willing to negotiate his exit.

Marotta spoke to Sky Sport Italia (h/t Football Italia) to assess the window, and according to him, the Blues' stance was the reason the move did not go ahead:

"We are satisfied with the overall transfer window, as we wanted to raise the quality level of the squad and achieved that objective.

"The January window is all about taking opportunities, but we also brought in valuable experience and quality to bolster our options.

"There were some priorities, which were the players we signed, so were completely satisfied. We had wanted another target, which was Giroud, but Chelsea were not prepared to even negotiate with us."

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That stands in contrast to what was reported in France when it became clear the transfer would not happen toward the end of the window. According to RMC (h/t Get French Football News), the parties had agreed to a deal, and the Italians pulled the plug:

Per the report, Inter made contact in December and had everyone convinced they would bring him in. When they reneged, Giroud's entourage tried to find another club, but at that point Chelsea had taken him off the market.

Tammy Abraham suffered an injury, leaving the Blues short on depth. They were linked to Napoli's Dries Mertens, but that transfer never seemed likely.

Giroud's position as the starting striker for France at this summer's UEFA Euro 2020 tournament is far from certain, and the former Arsenal man needs playing time badly.

GFFN were not happy when Chelsea didn't even include him in the matchday squad shortly after taking him off the market:

The 33-year-old has started just two Premier League matches so far this season.

Inter armed themselves for the Serie A title race by bringing in three players with Premier League experience. Christian Eriksen, Victor Moses and Ashley Young made their way to the Italian fashion capital, joining Romelu Lukaku and Alexis Sanchez, who both left Manchester United for the Nerazzurri last summer.

Lukaku has formed a fantastic partnership with Lautaro Martinez, combining for 27 Serie A goals so far. Depth is limited behind those two, however, with 17-year-old star prospect Sebastiano Esposito the next man up.