Bayer Leverkusen are stepping up their pursuit of Inter midfielder Mateo Kovacic, despite the Nerazzurri reassuring supporters that the Croatian is not for sale.
Roberto Mancini would be reluctant to lose the talented midfielder, but Inter have so far struggled to offload other players to finance moves for their own transfer targets and may be set to lose Kovacic after the German side met with the players representatives on Tuesday.
According to German newspaper Bild, the Bundesliga side are desperate to strengthen ahead of their crucial Champions League qualifiers in August and could meet Inter’s €22 million asking price for the 20-year-old midfielder, who is also being chased by English Premier League giants Liverpool.
Kovacic joined Inter from Croatian side Dinamo Zagreb in an €11 million deal in January 2013 and has made just shy of 100 appearances for the Nerazzurri.
