Inter kick off the new Serie A season on Saturday in the midst of fan protests and money troubles that threaten to derail their title defence before it has even begun.

A dramatic summer for the champions reached its lowest ebb last week when star striker Romelu Lukaku was sold to Chelsea, a transfer that enraged not just supporters but reportedly also CEO Giuseppe Marotta and new coach Simone Inzaghi.

The Gazzetta dello Sport reported that Inter’s cash-strapped Chinese owners Suning forced the sale of Belgium forward Lukaku after having already offloaded buccaneering right-back Achraf Hakimi, a key figure in their first Serie A triumph since 2010, to Paris Saint-Germain.

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