Inter's Champions League Opener and Dimarco's Contract Situation

At the Bernabeu tonight, Inter’s Champions League opener against Real Madrid comes with a subplot that could shape their medium-term future.

Federico Dimarco is not on the pitch. He is on the agenda.

Dimarco absent, but central

Inter begin their 2026-27 Champions League campaign on Spanish soil at 20.00 UK time (21.00 CEST), already stretched by the absences of Dimarco and Djed Spence through injury. The left-sided talisman has been working with a support strap around his knee in training, a visible reminder of why he is not part of Simone Inzaghi’s plans for this first European test.

Yet even without his trademark surges down the flank, Dimarco still dominates the conversation around Inter.

Sky Sport Italia report that his agent, Arturo Canales, has travelled to Madrid and taken his seat in the stands, using the glamour of the Bernabeu as the backdrop for an important face-to-face with Inter’s new sporting director, Dario Baccin.

No cameras. No microphones. But a crucial meeting all the same.

A player in a position of power

Dimarco has not been shy about his situation. The Italy international recently made it clear he was still waiting for a concrete proposal for a new contract, despite his current deal running until June 2028. On paper, that expiry date gives Inter plenty of time. On the pitch, his performances tell a different story.

He has just been named Serie A Player of the Season for 2025-26, an award that shifts the balance of power firmly in his favour at the negotiating table. Full-backs do not often dictate the tempo of a club’s contract strategy. Dimarco does.

He is no longer simply an academy product enjoying his moment. He is a title winner, a symbol of the club’s recent success, the player who posed with both the Coppa Campioni d’Italia and Coppa Italia trophies at San Siro in May and looked entirely at home with the weight of silverware in his arms.

When a player reaches that status, “waiting” for an offer starts to feel like an insult as much as a delay.

New director, first big test

For Inter, this is not only about numbers on a payslip. It is also about a new power structure.

Baccin, long the right-hand man to Piero Ausilio, has now stepped into the role of director of sport. Tonight’s conversation with Canales doubles as an introduction and a statement. The club must show that the transition from Ausilio to Baccin will not slow or complicate key renewals.

Dimarco’s case is the ideal – and unforgiving – first exam. Lose momentum here, and the message to the dressing room is obvious. Move decisively, and Inter lock down one of Serie A’s standout performers in his prime.

As the teams walk out into the Bernabeu glare, the story on the grass will be about how Inter cope without their injured wing-back. High above the pitch, in a quiet corner of the stands, the story about how they plan to keep him for the long haul is already being written.