The Offside Inter Milan - All Posts

Mazza... Instead of Strama, Already?

2013-05-21T16:33:45Z

The heavy rumor has a signature, a contract duration and a salary. More to come.

Poll

How Do We Feel About Mazzarri?

Inter 2 – Udinese 5

2013-05-21T03:40:46Z

Inter fold at home against an Udinese squad that has won 8 in a row 2-5. There certainly aren’t any heroes to take away from a game like this in which the players were only hoping for the end to come as quickly as possible. Unfortunately Udinese were just as happy to play the entire 90 of the last game as Inter were to pray for its demise.

For one side of this contest it was a training match in which attendance was voluntary and punished. The other half of the contest saw itself gain what would in all likelihood be another pointless European experience. It’s hard to say who the winners are. It most certainly isn’t the supporters of Italian football who will pay for another season of a big club missing European money and coefficients. But then, this isn’t the only game occurring on Sunday at 2:45 EST in the US in which the supporters of Italian football were shortchanged...right Bonolis and Fiorentina?

I think it’s pretty worthless to go through each player and ream them a new one just because more likely than not, they were just hoping to get through the game uninjured so that vacation time wouldn’t have to get eaten up by surgery and rehab. I will say this, if this season has to be remembered for the amount of losses by the club, I personally will remember it for the advent of Juan, Kovacic and Handanovic. As bad as this team was at times, these 3 will give hope to the others that we have found in previous seasons like Naga, Guarin and Ranocchia.

But it’s hard for me to make any conclusions about the team from this game except this: if there was a game that I would point at and said, “The players weren’t with Stramaccioni here!” This is the game I would point at. And it makes me sad for the team to have come this far to bow out without any pride, but it also makes me sad for the coach. He obviously has a good relationship with the individual players, but perhaps he lacks a bit of menace over them. And it’s chronic to the history of the team under Moratti. The coach doesn’t have – again Mourinho the exception – the whip to tear performances out of the players consistently. You want a reason for Pazza Inter? Here it is: as long as the team is allowed by Moratti to rise and fall on the whims of the players and not restrained to a consistent level from the coach through fear of employment/embarrassment there is going to be outings like this one. The players have a good relationship with Strama but there isn’t any menace to it. The love is unconditional, and it shouldn’t be. Is this his flaw? That he wasn’t strong enough with the players or is it to be part of the legacy Moratti leaves us with, that there needed to be a stronger man then him to be able to get his money’s worth out of the players?

All that being said about the motivation – or lack thereof – in the players yesterday, I will say that it was worth the price of admission to see another youth player playing in the defense for a full 90. I am a total mark for the youth players getting time on the senior team. Pasa and Benassi getting more time in this game – as they should, considering – was a smart move. No one is going to remember anything about this game, really so if they made a dozen mistakes… who cares?

Now for some house keeping. There will be an end of season review, player eval and there will of course be rumor updates, because a transfer window without rumors is like a fish without a bicycle. How many I inevitably work with depends on how maso I feel.

FORZA INTER

Odd Thoughts on the Season

2013-05-21T03:36:41Z

This was the kind of season that made me so appreciative of all the successes that Inter enjoyed throughout the 2000’s. I can’t say that I was anywhere near as dialed into the team in the 90s as I am now, there just wasn't the technology or the access. But there were ways to keep in touch until the magic of the internet made more possible.

Those were dark days, even darker than people would have you believe these this season was. There were worries once or twice that Inter would be relegated. Of course later things eventually brightened. Keep in mind that there wasn’t the same kind of media saturation there is now either, so the perception now is so out of proportion only because it’s so pervasive.

But that isn’t to say that it’s not bad now. It is. It was bad when I first looked at the roster and the coach and said that expectations needed to be tempered. But the Italian media didn’t want to believe that story and declared that Inter must perform at a certain level. And when it didn’t, well, then Inter had to be punished. Not the dummies who couldn’t tell you the first thing about the sport that got the scouting of the team wrong all those months ago, those guys get off scot free to perpetuate more crimes against journalism and are probably still employed making up transfer stories as we speak.

And here we are. Is the coach going to be fired? I don’t know. Does he deserve to be fired? I don’t know. Am I happy that we got a whole year of stability out of the coach instead of the usual circus? Yes. Moratti probably could have hired another coach to spur the team to a couple more wins until the team figures out that the new coach won’t have any more power to cut them/make meaningful changes than the old one did. But the next coach/Strama will at least get the appearance of backing from Management.

But meaningful changes are needed. The team needs to say a final goodbye to the old guard. And this time actually back a coach who wants to sit Cambiasso and Zanetti – who we all know are coming back.

The team needs to find a formation that they want to use and THEN find players who can fit that system. That’s a lot saner than just finding guys and then deciding how to play them. Plan first, act second. The problem is who is making the plans.

The job for Branca, if he still has one – and frankly I think that if the coach goes, he should be holding Andrea’s hand as they leave together – will be to completely rebuild the attack with players who wouldn’t remember the previous President (Pellegrini, not Facchetti). Of course, this has been Branca’s job for several years and he’s failed abysmally at it so far. Ibra and Eto’o essentially fell into his lap and he probably ended up giving too much away for Milito. Making mistakes isn't a sin, I've been told. But not learning anything from those mistakes certainly is.

So the job becomes rebuilding the attack with an eye to the ever dwindling budget. There will very probably be sales to facilitate some of the moves that will be required. I know that we all have our favorite candidates for the chop. Time will tell if Branca can prove up to the task this time.

FORZA INTER

Preview: Inter – Udinese

2013-05-19T05:02:20Z

Who: Inter v Udinese

What: Serie A Week 38

Where: Stadio G. Meazza, Milano

Date: Sunday, May 19, 2013

Time: 20:45 CET local time, 2:45 pm EST

INTER

Called Up: Handanovic, Belec, Carrizo; Pasa, Pereira, Juan Jesus, Nagatomo, Ferrara, Spendlhofer; Schelotto, Kovacic, Alvarez, Guarin, Kuzmanovic, Cambiasso, Benassi; Rocchi, Forte, Palacio

Probable Formation: 4321

Handoanovic; Pereira, Juan, Pasa, Nagatomo; Cambiasso, Kuzmanovic, Kovacic; Guarin, Alvarez; Rocchi

Injuries/Suspensions: Milito, Samuel, Silvestre, Zanetti, Mudingayi, Jonathan, Castellazzi, Obi, Chivu, Mbaye, Stankovic, Gargano

Form: WLLLD

Notes: This is it for the 2012-2013 season, long may it be forgiven, but never forgotten. The defense for this game will be interesting, as Juan is the Grandpappy of the centerbacks at 22 years old. He is older by years the next oldest central defender, assuming that Strama doesn’t make Cambiasso sit on the back line like he did last game. That makes me smile. If Cambiasso sits on the back line than there is an opening for Benassi in the midfield, and having Kovacic and Benasso start together makes me smile too. I like having options to play who are younger but have shown that they can do something. In a perfect world that would be my ideal bench – young guys hungry to play with some proven ability.

But let’s move on to this game. Once again, for what seems like the billionth time there is a “he better win this one or else…” vibe from the morons in the media. Let me tell you something that you can take to the bank, if there was a win or else moment it’s not now that every game is meaningless and the team is already booking vacation travel at the last game with nothing to play for, okay? If Moratti was so enraged with Strama that he wanted to can him, it would have been done. Moratti isn’t shy on this account.

So it’s a glorified friendly and I will be watching it, because that’s what I do. I will eager to see what the kids, if any can do with no pressure and all eyes on them. I will be watching to see how those players on the bubble will play – hard running or ready to accept transfer, and I am looking at you Ricky Alvarez.

Udinese

Probable Formation: 3511

Brkic; Benatia, Danilo, Domizzi; Zielinski, Basta, Allan, Pinzi, Silva; Pereyra, Di Natale

Injuries/Suspensions: Lazzari

Form: WWWWW

Notes: Udinese will do what Udinese always does – they will play everyone back, clog the midfield and then try to hit on the counter. They are masters at it and they have perhaps the perfect forward for the job. He’s not too tall or good with the head, but that’s okay because his team generally won’t work the ball down the field to the byline. He’s not too fast, but he doesn’t have to be because his first touch will be just outside or just inside the box. He’s not great technically, but that’s okay because he only touches the ball a couple of times before he shoots. He’s active, he’s willing to use the whole width of the field, he’s very accurate and he’s smart. He’s also paired up with the perfect coach for his strengths. He’s the one to watch.

I alternate between thinking he’s a master at his work and thinking that he’d never make it as a forward on any team with any ambition – hence his National team career. Whatever he is, he’s the best player on that team and if Inter want to do anything on Sunday, friendly or no, someone’s going to have to shut him down.

If I have a prediction, though… I’m thinking Udinese win.

FORZA INTER

At This Time I Can Confirm...

2013-05-18T20:37:36Z

Absolutely nothing.

That’s the gist of all the "news" I have been reading these last few days regarding the coaching situation here in Inter Land. There is absolutely nothing that anyone can say with a certainty. But there are a host of rumors.

Strama

The club and the coach are both saying the same thing, which in and of itself we have a minor miracle. Both parties are saying that after the last game, there will be an evaluation.

And frankly this is something of a relief to see. It should be that a coach gets at least a full season to see what happens. I personally don’t like – despite the happy news of the departures of coaches that I didn’t care for – all the turnover at the coaching position that this team is famous for. I get the President is a big fan, and there is something to be said about going with your guts at times, but too much is too much. The man in charge needs more than 3 months in charge just to give a fair chance to all the changes that he inevitably made.

So if Strama gets his full year, than at least everyone got a chance to show what they could do, including the coach. For the record, I hope this guy sticks around. He gave time to an unprecedented number of young people, the players played for him right to the end of meaningful matches and there has been a sense of change since he’s been here – it’s a welcome feeling.

Mazzarri

There was in the papers today or yesterday a confirmation that the man is a step away. There were no quotes in the article nor were there any specifics of meetings or face time. In effect there is confirmation of nothing. It was just a clever ruse designed to trip me up. When I saw the headline I told someone nearby that 1.) I am not that big a sucker to believe the headline one minute but that 2.) I am that big a sucker to actually read it and be proven right. I was dead on with both counts.

I have no idea what’s going on with this front. I don’t think that Mazzarri will be the Inter Manager next season – he will probably demand some kind of transfer control if he comes, hence I am differentiating between him and Strama – but that’s just a gut call. Personally, I think that he would want to build a program to win quickly and that’s not us. This team needs some work and some holes to fill.

Plus I have no idea what happens to whatever youngsters we have coming up. There is something of a perception of a definite plan with Strama (is that ambiguous enough?). With Mazzarri I get the feeling that players who can't help right now get sacrificed to the Ghost of Christmas Present. And unlike a lot of people, I am perfectly willing to play the young guys and endure the mistakes rather than pull a Destro. It'll mean an up and down season, again, but it will be an all-Inter affair with our boys. And I can live with that.

Mancini

This is the one that made my hair stand straight up, and if you had ever seen my hair you would be impressed with that feat, let me tell you. NO. Just NO. I wouldn’t let this man back here if he brings Kun Aguero and a stadium. If, on the off chance that he comes back to this team, you all will need another sucker to write these things, because I will not do it. I have a kid somewhere around here and if Mancini brings his sorry carcass back to Black and Blue then it’s high time we spent some time together and learn each other’s name or something parent-y like that.

That’s just my 2 cents.

FORZA INTER

Call Ups and Strama Presser For Udinese

2013-05-18T20:02:30Z

Andrea Stramaccioni has named a squad of 21 for tomorrow's game against Udinese at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, at 20:45.

Goalkeepers: 1 Handanovic, 27 Belec, 30 Carrizo;

Defenders:28 Pasa, 31 Pereira, 40 Juan Jesus, 55 Nagatomo, 62 Ferrara, 63 Spendlhofer;

Midfielders:7 Schelotto, 10 Kovacic, 11 Alvarez, 14 Guarin, 17 Kuzmanovic, 19 Cambiasso, 24 Benassi, 61 Garritano, 90 Olsen;

Forwards: 8 Palacio, 18 Rocchi, 45 Forte.

PLAYERS AND I ARE THINKING ABOUT INTER v UDINESE

"My future? I guess you don't like what I tell you because both myself and Moratti have been clear on the matter. But I'll let him do the talking"

The day before Inter take on Udinese in what will be their last match of the season, Andrea Stramaccioni gave his view of tomorrow's opponents Udinese in a press conference: "We'll be playing a team that in terms of results has been more consistent than anyone in the run-in. I think Di Natale has recovered too, and he and Muriel are a real danger up front. We're going to be facing a very motivated side but the lads have trained well and we want to give our fans a proper send-off."

The coach was asked for an update on the fitness of individual players. "Palacio is looking good. He's worked very well this week and will be in the squad, though I don't think he'll start the game. As for the players who have been playing through gritted teeth recently, my plan is not to put them at risk. I mean Ranocchia, who's hobbled through the last three games, Chivu and Cassano, who's had a successful operation."

The next topic brought up was the expected managerial merry-go-round this summer, with Stramaccioni asked if he was surprised to hear the recent rumours about Walter Mazzarri: "I have to smile because I guess you don't like what I tell you. Both myself and the president have been very clear on the matter on a number of occasions. And I don't want to be the one to upset this little game: Mazzarri is going to speak after tomorrow's match, Allegri after the match, why should I speak now? I'll let my president do the talking anyway. Tomorrow I'll be the Inter coach and I'm sure that anything interesting which should emerge after the game will come from the president's mouth. As he's already said, it's only right that anything should come from him." A journalist then pointed out that in the past coaches have had their position confirmed in May only to then be sacked in June. To which Stramaccioni replied: "And how many who have been confirmed in May have lost their job in the same month? I could be the first coach to have his position confirmed and then revoked in the space of four days..."

How would Stramaccioni feel if he should one day leave Inter? "When that happens, if it happens, though it's quite normal when you're a coach, all I'll have to say to my president is thanks. Would I feel as if I've been messed around with if it were to happen now? No, of course not. If it did happen now, my only regret would be that I haven't been able to give him what he deserves. You get bad years. Everyone takes a fall every now and then. What matters is how you pick yourself up and we're ready to pick ourselves up next season."

"FANS WANT ACTIONS NOT WORDS that's what we're going to give them next season. In the meantime we're concentrating on ending the year well at the San Siro"

"Action and not words. That goes for me just as it does for everyone. The fans want to see results." That's Andrea Stramaccioni's target for next season, as he explained when asked during today's press conference to provide a motto for the Nerazzurri's next campaign.

He continued: "For now though, we're concentrating on ending the year well at the San Siro. We'll have to be on our toes at the back, with no Ranocchia, Chivu, Samuel or Silvestre. Andrea and Juan have shown how good they are. I'll remind you that at the start of the year Juan was seen as a promising player: he's only 21 and has got immense growth potential. I consider Andrea to be one of the certainties of this team. However, I would never look at the defence as separate from all the rest. Tomorrow we have objective selection problems at the back and at least one Primavera lad will have to start.

Is Catania's result important? We've spent a lot of time looking at others' results this year. If we get a good result then we'll look to see what Catania have done, but in any case we'll give it our all."

The transfer market was next up and the coach was asked if Inter need to sign some full-backs and wingers. "I don't think we need wide players in defensive areas, but in attack we do, yes. But I don't think there are many around in Italy.

"Could some players leave, like Guarin? I hope Inter keep hold of their best players. Fredy is important for us and I rate him, he'll stay here.

"Paulinho? He's international class. He likes to be the one who gets forward when he plays in a central midfield partnership, he's young, talented and has plenty of room for improvement.

"Markovic? A very interesting youngster and we helped to make his name known [smiling]. He's one of a group of emerging 19-year-olds that includes Kovacic. We're interested in players like him but we'll have to see.

"Florenzi? I player I'm very fond of as I coached him in Roma's youth academy. There was a time when he was almost released. But he's Roman and a Romanista so I hope he can spend many years at Roma and become the next Totti, the next De Rossi.
"Generally speaking, I think the summer transfer window will be very different this year. Things were rather static last year with most clubs keeping the same coach, whereas this time around I think a number of top clubs will change coach, and of course each coach likes to adjust a team to his liking. Inter have already built a good base and now we need to add something important – not in terms of numbers but in fulfilling precise requirements."

A Japanese reporter then brought a smile to Stramaccioni's face when he asked how Yuto Nagatomo can play with a 'broken knee'. The coach replied: "Despite being a Christian and a Catholic, I don't believe miracles happen in football so I don't think his knee is 'broken' [smiling], though he did have an injury. With the right treatment and the help of doctors Yuto was able to return to the pitch. We took it easy with him for the first two days this week because he hadn't played for a while but then he started training with the rest of the team again. He'll play tomorrow and then, touch wood, he'll be available for Japan."

FORZA INTER

News and Notes May 15th

2013-05-16T04:46:10Z

There is just nothing happening out there that isn’t pure conjecture at this point. Everyone is in such a rush to be the first media outlet to get a story, any story, correct first. I have collected some of those plus other tidbits for your entertainment/edification.

-- For the second year in a row there is a Ranocchia to Juventus rumor. For the record, the 25 year old has a contract with Inter until 2015 and makes around €1.5 mil per year – in other words, Inter would have to be the most moronic team in the history of Serie A to sell him – young man still coming into his prime, paying him peanuts and all the sweat equity put into him. Mind you, I am not saying they won’t, but to even put that out there in the wind is a little crazy. The source is Tuttosport, so crazy is par for the course. Mind you, the way things are – wink wink - there is every reason to doubt that this originated with the “newspaper”.

-- There continue to be stories regarding the future of the coach. The Mazzarri rumor won’t die and there is a sliver of a chance that this is coming from inside the club. The persistence of the rumor is just too weird. Crazy conspiracy thought: someone is trying to get Mazzarri to delay signing with Napoli with the promise of Inter – and that lack of a signature is supposed to be a constant temptation for Morratti. I don’t think it’s true, but it seems to fit the facts and its fun to speculate.on a blog.

-- Just my opinion, but I think Cassano will be wearing Blue and Black next season.

-- Sky Sports have reported - with a giant wink – that Zenga will leave his team, Al Nasr, this summer. My 2 cents is that we aren’t that desperate to hire Zenga. I loved… No, I idolized Zenga as a goalkeeper. But I would rather peel out my eyeball with a melon baller before hiring him as a coach.

-- The Italy U17s have won the semi-finals of the UEFA U17 Championship against Slovakia 0-2. They play the winner of Russia – Sweden for the finals. I bring this up because there are 5 Inter players playing on this team. Not just on the team, but playing on the field. The hits just keep on coming for this youth project that they have going here. There is just such a pool of talent that this team can draw from starting at the just graduated Primavera, to the current Primavera to the next wave of kids just coming up… if they could only just find that magic formula that can incorporate those young players into the first team.

-- Benitez continues to flap his lips about Inter when he should be hoping everyone just forgets the incident. “I told them I needed to renew the club…” he says, stupidly still deluded into thinking that anyone was going to go where he lead them. We all know the team needed to be renewed, jackass! Even I knew that the team needed to be renewed! The trick is to renew the club and yet still get the players on the roster to play for you not in spite of you! Why is this guy such an ass!

-- There are more reported player signings for Inter than would fill 3 teams. I will continue to meet everyone with profound skepticism until I see that person holding a shirt next to a smiling Director. That goes double for player sales as well – and I am looking at you Handanovic and Guarin.

-- There is a rumor that Stanklovic will be hanging on next season as a locker room influence. Does he get paid to do that? Between him, Chivu and Samuel I am so ready to bid them a fond farewell and thanks. This lingering around doesn’t do anyone any service. I want to remember these guys fondly, not with irritation. This pathological fear of young guys getting on the first team is really grating especially considering how talented some of these guys might be.

FORZA INTER

Genoa 0 – Inter 0

2013-05-14T04:16:13Z

A famous man once said that two wounded is better than one dead and that’s what we had in the second half of this game. As the draw went longer and Palermo started losing both sides realized that a stalemate hurt no one. Points have been in short supple for both teams and 1 point shared was better than nothing.

This isn’t to say that the game was worthless. There was a ton of Inter youth out on display. Kovacic, who just turned 19 a week ago, just made his 17^th appearance for Inter since his joining the team at the crack of February. Simone Pasa just completed his fifth appearance and logged 90+ of his 277 minutes played for the senior team this season to rave reviews from all corners. Benassi came in as a sub to make his 12^th appearance this season. Making his debut was Lukas Spendlhofer.

Cuchu was masterful playing the mentor for Pasa in the back line. All game long it was obvious that Cambiasso was organizing the back and bossing the novice around. For his part, the novice was smart enough to take his direction and play fearless on the tackle.

Also there was the return of some of the injured. Nagatomo didn’t set the world on fire but he displayed some of his tenacity and speed. He looked like he spent time on the training ground and didn’t look too cold when he came on. Cassano looked like he was out for blood when he came on the field again, but at some point he realized that no one else was playing too hard so he eased up.

Handanovic looked like he might have proved the supposed €30 million transfer fee too little. The Borriello save was the best of the night, but there were probably 2 more good saves for the keeper. At some point the guys in the back thought that Naga on Borriello at the end of crosses was a poor idea. Pasa was much better on him.

Ranocchia has been playing on one knee for a while and yesterday was the last straw for it. Lukas came on and did a very credible job for 15 minutes. Interesting fact – both Spendlhofer and Pasa are converted midfielders who have very decent foot skills but unknown are how these guys can handle things when the ball is in the air.

Perhaps taking a step back this game was Alvarez. This wasn’t like the last game when he missed open chances. There just wasn’t any push or insidious dribbling or passing. And considering that is his job description this is a problem – remember the first half was still considered to be fair game as the Palermo game was 0-0 until the 40something minute. Sharing a little less of the apathy was Guarin. When he wasn’t shooting footballs onto the moon, he actually had a shot or two look interesting and he probably ran more than Ricky did.

Rocchi was on the field but he looked like he completely phoned it in all game long.

I do think that the young guys were only too happy to play for Andrea. They were very conscience about doing what he wanted and stay in their zones. Cuchu looked like he wanted to do well because he is him. Kuzmanovic looked like he’s carrying too much weight. If he can find the motivation to lose it so that he can be more effective, I will think much more highly of his desire if nothing else. I didn’t see to much to impress from Schelotto. He probably wasn’t the worst player on the field but he was in the contest to win that title.