Jordi Alba rejects Inter Milan loan, will stay at Barcelona - report

The rumors of a possible loan deal between Barcelona and Inter Milan for Jordi Alba came out of nowhere on Wednesday and really shocked Barça fans, who didn’t think Xavi Hernández’s decision to bench him in the last two games meant the player was all of a sudden out of the coach’s plans.

But there was indeed an agreement in principle on a season-long loan between the Blaugrana and Inter, who were going to pay 60% of Alba’s salary in this campaign. However, the full-back has formally rejected the idea of moving to Italy and will stay at Barça, according to a report from Javier Miguel of Diario AS.

According to the report, Alba cancelled a scheduled meeting with Xavi to discuss the situation and has made it clear he understands his current role and will fight for a place in the starting XI despite the competition.

Alejandro Balde has played very well in his last two starts and Marcos Alonso is set to arrive as part of the deal that will send Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to Chelsea, which will leave the Blaugrana with three left-backs and Alba seemingly as the last option at the moment.

With the World Cup just two months away, Alba knows he’s in danger of missing out if he doesn’t play regular club football. But that reality hasn’t changed his mind: he wants to stay at Barça and prove he’s the best man for the job.