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Inter Milan are reportedly eyeing a move to re-sign Mateo Kovacic from Real Madrid in the summer, three years after selling the midfielder to Los Blancos.

According to Corriere dello Sport, Inter director of football Piero Ausilio is "determined" to bring the Croatia international back at the end of the season and talks have opened around a €30 million (£26 million) deal, paid in instalments (via Calciomercato.com).

The report also links Kovacic, 23, with a move to Liverpool, and the Premier League outfit could likely offer a big transfer fee should they want him.

Kovacic has struggled for regular first-team action at Real. In the three seasons he has spent at the Santiago Bernabeu, he has started only 35 games in La Liga.

That is not a huge surprise given he is competing for a place with Luka Modric and Toni Kroos, who arguably comprise best central-midfield duo in the world.

However, when he has been given a chance, he has impressed. And his statistics stand up to scrutiny, per Squawka:

Modric will be 33 in September and is likely to play a more limited role relatively soon. In Kovacic, Real have a ready-made replacement, and it would be a big surprise were manager Zinedine Zidane open to letting him leave.

Real could surely only be tempted to sell Kovacic if an astronomical offer came in. In this market, €30 million would be far from value for the selling club.

Kovacic has the potential to become one of the best central midfielders in the world, and Real can offer him realistic ambitions of winning a lot of major silverware in the coming years.

Inter remain a huge club, but their competitiveness at both the domestic and European levels has waned in recent years.

Unless Kovacic agitates for a move back to the San Siro, it does not seem a likely switch.