PAUL INCE, the England and Internazionale midfielder, has admitted he will return to England. Liverpool are interested in buying Ince, but are not prepared to pay the kind of salary he is demanding nor the £6 million fee that Inter are demanding.
Stopped by reporters as he drove out of the Inter training centre at Appiano Gentile near Milan on Saturday, Ince said: "I've always said that for me the family comes before my profession. Right now, I've got problems. I'm off to Thailand and when I get back I'll announce that I'm leaving (Inter). I'm sorry, especially for the fans, who did not merit my leaving".
Yesterday morning, Ince and the Inter squad set off on an eight-day tour of Hong Kong and Thailand during which the Milan club is due to play Hong Kong side Siang Tao as well as participate in a quadrangular tournament in Bangkok, featuring Portuguese club Porto, Argentine club Boca Juniors and the Thailand international team.
It is an open secret that Ince's wife, Claire, has for some time been keen to return to England to be near her family and relatives while the Inces are also concerned about the further education of their children, four-year-old Thomas and baby Daniel, born earlier this year.
Ince's decision to leave Inter, if confirmed, will prove a big disappointment both to the club President, Massimo Moratti, who himself signed Ince and to club fans, who have always greatly admired the Englishman's battling qualities and who brandished banners encouraging him to stay with the club during their final Serie A games this season.
Ince's recent positive performances for England both in their critical World Cup win away to Poland and during the tournament in France may have rekindled English interest in him, with Chelsea and Newcastle also reportedly having made inquiries about his availability.
In two seasons with Inter, Ince failed to win anything although the club qualified for the UEFA Cup in both years. This current season has been especially exasperating for Inter, beaten finalists in the UEFA Cup (by German side Shalke 04), beaten Italian Cup semi-finalists (by Napoli) and third in Serie A and thus just edged out of the Champions' League by Parma. In 73 Serie A, Italian and UEFA Cup games for Inter, Ince scored 13 goals.
