Arsenal linked with Icardi after Inter chief comments

Mauro Icardi is increasingly likely to be stripped of the captaincy at Inter Milan as his row with the club intensifies.

Icardi, who was appointed club captain upon extending his deal at the San Siro in the summer, sits behind only Roma’s Edin Dzeko in the Serie A goalscoring charts this season.

However, the Argentinean has incited Inter fans with claims in his recent autobiography.

In Sempre Avanti, Icardi writes that he confronted an Ultra leader who had taken a shirt from a child’s hand to throw it back following a 3-1 defeat to Sassuolo. Icardi says he gained popularity with his teammates as a result.

The Inter Ultras then released a statement dismissing his claim, and unveiled a banner branding him a ‘piece of sh*t‘ during the 2-1 defeat to Cagliari, a game in which they celebrated after Icardi missed a penalty.

The Sun are reporting that Icardi, who has been a target for Arsenal over previous transfer windows, could again be on Arsene Wenger’s wishlist this January.

‘A potential move to Arsenal for Icardi could be nearer after fans first declared war on their captain with a banner ahead of their clash with Cagliari,’ they write.

‘Icardi has presented a letter of apology to the fans but it looks like their fiery relationship could be at an end – with the Gunners waiting in the wings,’ the article adds.

Inter vice-president Javier Zanetti has hinted that the club may change captains.

“Will we be taking action? Unfortunately yes,” he said. “The fans are the most important element, they accompany us and we all should respect them,” Zanetti told Mediaset Premium.

“We cannot accept this behaviour from a person who works for our club. After this match we will talk things over and see what happens.

“Will we remove the captain’s armband? We’ll talk about it later, but this is an issue not just for Icardi, but for everyone who is part of the club. Behaviour must be in line with the values of the history of Inter.

Sporting director Piero Ausilio supported Zanetti’s comments, saying: “The whole club agrees with him.

“We had an important match today and we all needed to be focused on Cagliari. Monday we’ll have a chance to look at it with the player and analyse everything that has happened with a cool head.

“I don’t think we saw Icardi at his best today. It’s not easy to deal with certain kinds of pressure, especially when you’re a 23-year-old lad.”