After leaving Barcelona on loan in January to join Inter, Rafinha has impressed for Luciano Spalletti’s side which in turn has led to suggestions he could seal a permanent move.
The 25-year-old has made 16 Serie A appearances, scoring two goals and providing three assists as he has undoubtedly had a positive impact for the Nerazzurri.
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In turn, it’s only natural that they would consider a permanent move, while from the player’s perspective, given the level of competition at Barcelona, he may be well advised to consider his options and an exit for a more prominent role at the San Siro instead.
However, as reported by Calciomercato, Inter sporting director Piero Ausilio has been addressing the situation. While he is in no doubt from a football perspective that the club want Rafinha, it would be their financial limitations which prevent them from sealing a deal it seems.
“The deadlines are tight,” Ausilio he conceded. “It’s nothing to do with technical decisions, we had and continue to have no doubts, if anything it’s others who had them.
“From a financial point of view though we’ll be playing a different game at the end of the season.”
Much may depend on Inter’s ability to qualify for the Champions League, as they’ll have to beat Lazio at the Stadio Olimpico on the last day of the season to leapfrog them and snatch fourth place.
If they successfully do that, then perhaps with the revenue generated by being in Europe’s premier competition, they could be in a stronger position to sign their top targets, including Rafinha.
As per Calciomercato last month, it could take up to €38m including bonuses to prise Brazilian international away from Barcelona, but for the time being at least, it doesn’t sound particularly promising from an Inter perspective over their chances of signing him outright this summer.