Inter Milan legend Marco Materazzi blasts Milan Skriniar ahead of anticipated PSG move | OneFootball

Former Inter Milan captain Marco Materazzi has slammed Paris Saint-Germain-bound defender Milan Skriniar ahead of an imminent switch to Ligue 1.

In his recent interview with Canal+, the 2009/10 Champions League winner questioned the Slovakia international’s decision to ditch the Nerazzurri for a lucrative deal in Paris.

Despite Inter’s relentless attempts to tie him down to a new contract, Skirniar never had a shred of doubt in his mind once Les Parisiens came knocking on his door last summer.

And while Inter rebuffed PSG’s effort to lure the 28-year-old’s transfer to the Parc des Princes last summer, they were powerless to stop him from penning a pre-contract agreement in January.

With less than three months left to run on his current contract at Giuseppe Meazza, the former Sampdoria centre-back will join the joint-record French champions as a free agent at the end of the season.

However, Materazzi isn’t sure whether Skirniar made the right choice.

The Italian icon contemplated the Slovakian’s defensive qualities and challenged his decision to turn his back on the Inter faithful that has helped him develop into a senior star.

“He is a very strong defender, but not the best,” he said, as relayed by Football Italia.

“When he applies himself, he becomes strong in a collective context. We must not forget that when Skriniar arrived he played well, worked and had the merit of making Conte change his mind.

“He could have left after the first year under Conte when he didn’t play, but he improved a lot – he became indispensable to the team and the captain of Inter.”

Materazzi also urged Skriniar to learn from Lionel Messi’s underwhelming spell at PSG, even though the Argentine swapped Barcelona for Paris as arguably the best football player of all time.

“In his position, I personally would have stayed at Inter,” he added.

“I told him publicly ‘Remember how the Inter fans loved you – I don’t know if you will be loved like this in Paris, I hope so’, but all it takes is one look at Messi – he’s one of the best players in history.”

Skriniar has been on the sidelines since picking up a back injury in February and will not be able to help Inter hold onto a 2-0 aggregate lead in their Champions League quarter-final tie against Benfica.

Simone Inzaghi’s side will also have to bring their stuttering top-four pursuit in Serie A back on track without their standout defender, as it’s still uncertain when he could be available again.