Sneijder: Inter wanted to sell me
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Wesley Sneijder has revealed that Inter Milan were prepared to sell him to Manchester United in the summer transfer window because of money.
The two clubs were in negotiations over the summer for the transfer of the attacking midfielder from the Italian giants to the English champions, but failed to reach an agreement.
Inter, who are said to be suffering from financial problems, eventually sold striker Samuel Eto'o to Russian outfit Anzhi Makhachkala for a reported transfer fee of £18.4millon (21m euros).
Sneijder has now explained exactly what happened during the summer that led to much speculation of him leaving the 2010 European champions.
"I never thought that I would have to leave Inter," the 27-year-old told La Gazzetta dello Sport. "I left for vacation with the coming back to the team, but when I was on holiday my agent called me and told me that we needed to talk to Inter.
"And then Inter told me that if there was a possibility, then they would sell me. It was not a technical problem, I think it was a question of money.
"In short, something had changed so I decided to change my way of thinking too. When I arrived (to the training camp) in Pinzolo, I spoke with club (president Massimo) Moratti, who is a very important person for me, with (club directors) (Marco) Branca and (Piero ) Ausilio, and they all told me that I am very important for Inter.
"But I knew that one between me and (Samuel) Eto'o had to go: on the day that Eto'o left, I realised that I would remain, and I am happy to do so."
The Holland international joined Inter from Real Madrid in 2009 and won a historic treble in the 2009/10 campaign with the Milan giants.
Sneijder, who spent two seasons with Los Blancos and won the Primera Liga in 2008, believes that there is more competition in Serie A than in the Spanish top flight.
"I like the Italian league," he explained. "I like the pressure here.
"In Spain you can win almost every match, even away.
"In Italy, you can lose in Novara, in Catania, so it's more fun."
Claudio Ranieri's Inter are currently 17th in the Serie A table with four points from six matches and host Chievo at San Siro on Sunday afternoon.