There is hardly a transfer period in which Marko Arnautovic does not appear on the international rumour exchange. Austria’s Footballer of the Year is currently being associated by British and Italian media with a move to Inter Milan. However, Arnautovic rejected these speculations in Klagenfurt on Wednesday.
“I have a contract and I’m a player at West Ham. Nobody called me,” explained the 30-year-old. Nor did his brother and adviser Danijel make himself known in this matter. “He’d be the first one to call me, and that wasn’t the case.”
Arnautovic is therefore calm about the current situation. “The newspapers very quickly and gladly put my name in their mouths when it comes to a transfer, but I can assure you 100 percent that there is nothing concrete about it,” the Viennese told journalists. “Maybe people are talking about it, maybe I’m on some list. But I haven’t gotten anything concrete yet.”
At any rate, a change to Series A should not fail because of the language barrier. “My Italian is still perfect,” smirked Arnautovic. The offensive player had already been employed by Inter Milan in 2009/10 and won the triple of championship, cup and champions league. At that time, however, he only had three league appearances as a substitute.
Most recently, Inter finished fourth in the championship and qualified for the Champions League, which could be an incentive for a change. The participation in the royal class would itch him “in any case”, Arnautovic admitted. “But everyone would like to play Champions League. I’m very happy in the Premier League. My tendency is not to call my brother and say, ‘Get me out of there right now.'”
Arnautovic’s current focus is on the upcoming European Championship qualifiers against Slovenia on Friday in Klagenfurt and against North Macedonia on Monday in Skopje. “We must score points, there is no question about that, and we will score points,” announced the 79-fold ÖFB International (22 goals).
First of all, Arnautovic wants to live up to his claim as a leading player against Slovenia. “I’ll tell my team in practice that this won’t be an easy number. On Friday, before we go out, I’ll make it clear to everyone that this is a qualifying match, that it’s about something and that there’s nothing better than being at a European Championship.”
His last match to date was on 12 May at West Ham’s 4-1 draw in Watford, where he scored a goal at the end of the league. “After that, I had a good time with the family for two and a half weeks. Nevertheless, I continued to work on myself in the background. I’m fit, I’m here and I’ll give my all for the national team so that we can hopefully win the two matches,” Arnautovic promised.
In the last duel with Slovenia so far, the ÖFB star was able to get his way. In March 2018 he scored two goals at the 3-0 in Klagenfurt. “But that wasn’t the highlight of my life,” Arnautovic asserted. “This was a friendly match, now it’s a qualifying match. The Slovenians have a very good team, we have to be careful and give everything. Only with 100 percent will you have a chance.”
What happens when the ÖFB selection does not reach its limits was seen last March at the 2:4 in Israel. Arnautovic stressed that the defeat in Haifa was not only due to a bad performance of the Austrians, but also to a lack of luck. “Shooting four goals and scoring four goals is brutal, only a few teams manage that. But congratulations to Israel.”
