Century Capital chairman Thomas Zilliacus confirmed that he has made an ‘official offer’ to buy Inter Milan. The investment fund have had an interest in the Nerazzurri that dates back to the summer, but no official talks over a potential sale have taken place as yet. Speaking with La TV Nerazzurra, Zilliacus confirmed that he has made an offer to take over the club, and is now waiting for a response:
“Yes, I have made an official offer for Inter to Zhang, the offer is on the table. I don’t want to go into detail, I respect Steven Zhang very much and I believe he deserves great respect. Now it’s up to them to answer, maybe they want to keep the club. I don’t want to speak publicly for others, I just want to present my vision for the club. I’m a fan like everyone else. But I don’t want to reveal the details of the offer publicly.”
“There have been discussions about the possibility that Al Thani, after abandoning the acquisition of Manchester United, would join me in an offer for Inter. I’ve been in contact with Al Thani’s team, everyone has to speak for themselves and I don’t want to speak for them. It is an option, to continue together, but there is also the possibility of not continuing together. I prefer not to comment further publicly.”
“Have I done due diligence? Buying a football club is not like buying a Coke at the supermarket. You need due diligence, it’s a long process. We are ready to start a due diligence at any time. We are ready to start this process if they give us the green light.”
“The skeptics? I like open communication with fans. Those who don’t want to listen to me can turn off the TV or radio. But there are so many people who want to hear my vision for Inter. I can assure you that so many things are happening and these things are not happening in public. Anyone who wants to listen to me, can listen to me. Whoever doesn’t want to, does not have to listen to me. I’m not forcing anyone.”
“What players would I like to sign? I’m not the owner of Inter and I don’t know if I ever will be. If it were to happen, then that would be the time to talk about players. To date, Inter have a very good team, there are no players who deserve to be replaced. It would be a lack of respect for current players to say such a thing. The current team is one of the best in the world, in the future we will see which players will come.”
“Owner or part-owner with others? I am open to any solution. I want to turn Inter into the best club in the world, I want to be there to build the best club in the world for the fans. Everything I want to do I want to do for the fans, I’m not interested in working with those who want to buy Inter as a personal trophy. Percentage of me taking over? Better not to do that, it depends on the current owner. I can only say that I am very interested. But the outcome is not up to me.”
