Skip to content
MILAN, ITALY – APRIL 05: Cristian Chivu, Head Coach of Inter, looks on from the team bench prior to the Serie A match between FC Internazionale and AS Roma at Giuseppe Meazza Stadium on April 05, 2026 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)
Cristian Chivu is on course to win the Scudetto in his first full season as a head coach, and reports on Wednesday indicate that a contract extension is now close and that the Romanian will be given more of a say on Inter’s transfer decisions moving forwards.
- Read Football Italia Ad-Free and get access to Exclusive News and Content – Free Trial – Click Here
Chivu was given his first senior head coach role with Parma last February, but did enough in his short time in charge to convince Inter into appointing him as the replacement for 2023-24 Scudetto winner and two-time Champions League finalist Simone Inzaghi ahead of the 2025-26 campaign.
Fast forward 10 months later, Chivu and Inter have a nine-point lead at the top of the Serie A table heading into the final six games of the season and it is now widely expected that the Nerazzurri will go on to claim their 21st league title.
Multiple outlets in Italy indicate that Chivu will be rewarded with a new and improved contract extension at the end of the season, potentially doubling his €2.5m-per-season salary until 2029 or potentially even 2030.
Chivu and Inter align on transfer strategy
According to reports from La Gazzetta dello Sport, Chivu will also have more of a say over Inter’s potential recruits on the transfer market moving forwards.
Last summer, Chivu had no say at all in two of the five new signings that the club brought in: Deals for Luis Henrique and Petar Sucic were negotiated by the club long before Chivu was appointed head coach.
Additionally, there were two high-profile players that Chivu attempted to sign last summer, namely former Atalanta star Ademola Lookman, now with Atletico Madrid, and Roma midfielder Manu Kone, but was unsuccessful on both fronts.
This time around, however, the club and coach plan to be in complete harmony in their decision making and are aiming to provide Chivu with players with profiles that suit his style of play. They are said to be targeting more physically imposing players, particularly in defence and midfield.
Names that have been linked with Inter ahead of the summer transfer window include Kone again, Atalanta’s Marco Palestra and Sassuolo centre-back Tarik Muharemovic.
ByPeter Young
Peter Young is a Senior Reporter with Football Italia.
