However, the immediate picture is slightly clouded by fitness concerns. Dumfries is currently sidelined with a muscle injury, which has somewhat cooled the prospect of a January departure. Inter, for their part, are focusing on his recovery, hoping to have him back to full fitness for the crucial post-Christmas run-in.
The club hierarchy is reportedly resigned to the possibility of losing him. They are aware that the release clause takes the decision out of their hands. If the player and his new representatives agree on personal terms with a suitor willing to pay the €25m, the Nerazzurri will be powerless to stop him.
For now, the focus is rehabilitation. Dumfries is working separately from the main group at Appiano Gentile, aiming to return to the pitch before the year is out. But in the background, the machinery for a summer exit is whirring into life. By leaving Mendes, he has cleared the decks for a new negotiation strategy. With a bargain price tag hanging over his head and two of Europe's biggest clubs needing reinforcements on the right, the wing-back is shaping up to be one of the most talked-about names of the upcoming summer window.