Nicolo Barella has prematurely extended his contract at Inter Milan, which runs until 2026, by a further three years. This apparently makes the 27-year-old the highest-paid Italian in Serie A.
June has already been a successful month for Nicolo Barella. Not only was the midfielder named in Italy’s final European Championship squad on June 6, he also became a father for the fourth time on the same day. Shortly before the start of the European Championship, his club Inter Milan announced that Barella had signed a new contract until June 30, 2029.
The previous contract was valid until the summer of 2026, but the Nerazzurri were obviously in a hurry to tie their top performer to the club for even longer. And the signing should be worth it, especially for Barella: According to the Gazzetta dello Sport, the 1.72-meter tall striker will become the highest-paid Italian in Serie A.
According to the report, Barella’s future salary will amount to 6.5 million euros per season, which could rise to seven million euros due to bonus payments. This would put Barella ahead of team-mate Alessandro Bastoni (€5.5 million per year) and Juventus striker Federico Chiesa (€5 million per year).
Only the CL title eluded him
Various sources in Italy also report that the agreement between Barella and Inter was reached back in January on the fringes of the Super Cup triumph in Saudi Arabia (1-0 against the then reigning champions Napoli). However, it took around six months for the announcement to be made. The contract extension has been official since Tuesday evening.
Barella has now been playing for Inter for five years. In the summer of 2019, the new Italian champions loaned him from his home club Cagliari Calcio for around twelve million euros – combined with a purchase obligation of 32.5 million euros. An investment that Inter are unlikely to have regretted
Barella is an integral part of the Milan team, having played 235 competitive matches for the Nerazzurri to date, scoring 22 goals and providing 51 assists. With Inter, he won the Italian championship twice, the Coppa Italia twice and even the Supercoppa three times. In June 2023, Barella also narrowly missed out on the Champions League title with Inter (0:1 in the final against ManCity).
In the season just ended, Barella appeared in 48 competitive matches (two goals, seven assists) for Inter. But a well-deserved break will have to wait: Barella wants to defend the European Championship title with Italy in Germany – three years ago he was in Italy’s starting eleven six times, including in the final against England, which was won dramatically on penalties.
