Opinion: The time has come for Inter to strip Icardi of captaincy
- Matthew Klimberg (@KlimbergCalcio)
The decision to give him the armband in the first place was controversial in its own right. While at Sampdoria, Icardi met and fell in love with his Instagram-famous wife, Wanda Nara. Eventually they got married and she now serves as his agent.
The issue is that they met when she was married to his teammate, and captain, Maxi Lopez…
Since stealing his teammate’s wife, he’s done nothing but shove it into his face. The most egregious act came when Icardi had Lopez’s children’s faces tattooed on his body. This was in addition to posting racy Instagram pictures referencing his wife’s decision to leave Lopez.
Last year the decision was made to allow Icardi to maintain the captain’s armband despite, in his memoir, threatening to murder Inter Milan ultras.
Now, with speculation of a move to Real Madrid swirling around him, Icardi has done nothing but add to his fans’ anxieties. Just last night he posted a cryptic “Bye bye” message to his followers, which sent them into a frenzy. Only weeks ago, his wife/agent posted that she was flying to Madrid (despite it being for a layover on her way to Argentina).
He undoubtedly possesses tremendous talent on the pitch. However, his behavior off it proves that he’s everything but a leader. With Inter Milan perilously close to a free fall out of the Serie A top four (a stretch of matches which has seen him disappear for the better part of two months), it may be time for manager Luciano Spalletti to curb his negative influence by stripping the armband from the petulant, immature, and self absorbed 24-year-old.