Massimo Moratti spoke exclusively to Inter Channel after the annual Kick Off tournament at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza.
This is what the Inter president had to say (from Inter.it):
Kick Off is a beautiful event in the temple of football, where Inter and its sponsors get together for a football tournament that is always very popular.
“I think it’s fun for all those who are here, for those who love playing football and for those who get satisfaction from playing the game. It is an immense pleasure to receive in this stadium our guests, who are Interisti as well as our sponsors, just like it’s a pleasure to see the younger ones play; and it’s a pleasure to have organised this tournament again this year.”
After the Scudetto victory, it’s now time for the national teams. Did you see Davide Santon play for the Italian men’s national team?
“Yes, I did. He’s very good and he gave confirmation of his maturity and self-confidence. If he continues like this – and I think he will because he has the right character – he will become better and better. It’s curious that Santon is already in the men’s national team, whereas Balotelli still hasn’t got there, but I think this will happen because Mario is indispensable for the Under-21s at the moment. I think they will both become two mainstays of Italian football, and I hope they become two mainstays in the Italian national team – for them, but also for national sport in general.”
Unfortunately, Mario Balotelli was the victim of another bad example of intolerance last Saturday.
“It’s like being in another world when there are incidents like this. It’s like returning to a past that should have been forgotten. What I can do is apologise to Mario and tell him that we all feel guilty of inserting him in a society of this kind. However, he is an intelligent lad with incredible maturity and I am pleased that he kept his cool and acted seriously, without being traumatised by what was a dramatic incident.”
On the subject of transfers, all the Inter fans are asking themselves about the future of Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
“Unfortunately I have no one to ask. But soon, and with calm, we will reach a solution. We are not forced to sell or buy. We have a strong team, players who have shown they care about Inter, including Ibrahimovic who in his three years with us has done his duty as a great professional, so I think we can continue like this unless there are situations that put us in the condition to do a good thing for us, the player or other players. With the current economic climate it is obviously necessary to sell as well, but I am not pushing in one direction or another. We will what happens in the summer transfer market, we will try to create a strong team next year too because our objectives won’t change.”
After the sale of Ricardo Kakà to Real Madrid it has been written that Italian football is becoming poor. What’s your opinion?
“Look, so much money is spent on foreign players that it’s not football that’s becoming poor, but someone else… You become poor when you buy, not when you sell. I think that Milan have done a great deal from an ecomonic point of view, though naturally not from a sporting one, but Milan know this too, because Kaka is a champion and an icon. Both things weren’t possible though and I think it’s the player himself who wanted to leave in January, and in the end I think it’s a deal that has its logic, even if it’s a great disappointment on a sporting level and for the Milan fans.”
Speaking of symbols, an official announcement of Marco Materazzi’s contract extension is imminent.
“Yes, but Materazzi has renewed because he always plays well when he goes on the pitch, not because he’s a symbol. His contribution in the championship was always positive this year too so Mourinho confirmed to me that he still wanted him. (Smiles) I was pleased about this so in a way that is useful and convenient for the club we extended his stay at Inter to see what will happen in the future, seeing as he is still young…”
In an interview given a few days ago José Mourinho declared that Inter need to buy another player after closing deals for Thiago Motta and Milito, but some media have interpreted this declaration as Mourinho asking for other players…
“It will depend on how many players we sell and on what we will need. For now I think that we are concluding deals for two very good players who make the team a lot stronger. We will see if we need to buy more players, on the basis of transfers out and what Mourinho asks us for.”
Hernan Crespo, who will play for Genoa next season, left with great respect for Inter and the Inter fans.
“Crespo has been very important for us. He has scored important goals and we will have a good memory of him. The same goes for another great player, Luis Figo. In his time here, and we hope in the future too, he has not only shown that he is a fantastic player, but a fantastic person too and he is a shining example for all his team-mates and for the club. I believe and hope that we can renew, not in footballing terms, but in a management role, although I think he could have played on for another year. A thought also for Cruz, who is at the end of his contract. Less has been said about him, but he has been formidable and fantastic for Inter. With his great personality he has often led us to victory. He has played a bit less this year, but he was indispensable in the past. We have grown fond of these three players that I have just mentioned, but we are also grateful to them and I would like to say thank you. Players like these don’t deserve to be ‘super substitutes’. Apart from Figo, who has stopped, the others can still be absolute protagonists in other teams.”
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