Inter still want to sign Giroud but also don’t want to sign Giroud anymore — reports

It’s a well-known fact that the rumor mill never sleeps. And in its quest to churn out stories, sometimes it ends up contradicting itself. But what if the same paper contradicts a rumor by stating the exact opposite in another rumor just a while later? That would be pretty hilarious, right? Right???

That’s exactly what happened when Gazzetta dello Sport (who are one of the more relatively trustworthy papers in Italy) decided to run a story on Olivier Giroud. The first report stated that Inter Milan were still looking to sign the veteran striker, despite his reported contract extension with Chelsea. That is quite standard stuff, to be fair, with the extension serving as a financial security for Chelsea (and Giroud, given Inter’s prior waffling) more than anything else.

But just a few hours later, there was another report in Gazzetta (via Sempre Inter), which was the polar opposite of the previous report. Apparently, the Nerazzurri have now given up on the 33 year-old and will now focus on the 32 year-old Dries Mertens (who has also been linked to Chelsea).

It’s hard to know what in the [FUN] exactly is happening out here, but if we were to guess, the truth is probably closer to Corriere dello Sport’s report (via Sempre Inter), which claims that Giroud will have to drop his salary demands for a deal with Inter Milan to go through. Giroud initially wanted €8 million net per season, which then dropped to €6 million net per season, but will now have to drop it to €3 million net per season since Inter will now be compelled to pay a transfer fee to the Blues.

Did we learn anything new? Not really.

Was this a waste of everyone’s time? Probably.

Does the calciomercato spew absolute garbage at times? Yes.

Should you carry on with your day? Definitely.