Beppe Marotta says he felt a strong sense of disappointment having failed to agree Milan Skriniar’s contract renewal. The Slovakian international opted to make the move to PSG in the summer, despite Inter’s numerous attempts at a contract renewal. Speaking with La Gazzetta dello Sport, Marotta explained why he believes Skriniar wronged the Inter fans, pointing also to Romelu Lukaku’s failure to agree terms on a contract:
Is Lukaku a regret, a disappointment or just an opponent?
“He is the past, Lukaku is the past. There is no corporate component that still thinks about him. Nobody, I say nobody. Then, as a football man, these are dynamics you have to budget for, it’s not like it’s the first time it’s happened to me…’.
Are you sure? A similar example?
“That of a player who pretended he wanted to renew his contract and then actually thought something else…’.
Namely Skriniar.
“I felt a strong feeling of disappointment. Because when a player doesn’t renew, he doesn’t go against the management or the president, he goes against the history and the value of the club. He has wronged Inter, not people. He could have renewed, we proposed many such solutions to him, even that of setting a release clause that would protect both him and Inter’s needs. But he always said no’.
Why did Inter shift the budget set for the attack to the defence at some point in the summer?
“Because in the meantime the opportunity had arisen to take an important player profile for the present and the future. Pavard has a strong asset value regardless of the role’.
Is it true that Thuram reminds you of his father?
“Humility, courage, perseverance: Marcus has the same values as Lilian, values that are the basis of personal success”.
Do you believe in another Champions League final?
‘Yes, I believe in it. Because unlike the Scudetto, where the strongest always wins, the Champions League is a bit like Milan-San Remo in cycling: favourable circumstances also count.
Inzaghi?
“His record is very positive, the club is very happy with him. He arrived at Inter with only one experience behind him as a coach, at Lazio. He’s young, compared to the average of coaches in our league, so he can consolidate. He’s different from the other coaches I’ve had in the past, as he should be: he’s for open, spectacular football that entertains. Then we are Inter: the spectacle must be combined with victories, otherwise playing well is useless’.
Will you go to market in January? There is talk of Taremi as a target.
“I don’t think so. But we are Inter and we are always attentive to every situation. And I’d like to say one thing: before the players were reluctant to accept Inter, now so many want to come, last summer we had to say several no’s. Thuram, Sommer and Pavard chose us, it means that Inter is considered credible’.
How difficult was it to close the last market in perfect balance between income and expenditure?
“Inter is today a model of sustainability. It is unacceptable that an ownership has to continually put money in, the Zhang family did it for around €900 million. We as management have an advantage, the ability to work with tranquility: this must be recognised in Zhang. But there is no club today that can do without player trading. One player of value per year must be sold, this the fan must understand. And more than losing a player, he has to worry about his team having everlasting life, guaranteeing the present and the future’.
What do you think of a transfer market made with algorithms, Milan style?
“Innovation forces you to open your mind, the idea of artificial intelligence is gaining ground everywhere. But at the basis of everything there will always be the human factor. Science cannot replace man’.
How much will the betting case affect this championship?
‘I am very sorry about what is happening. But the managerial class, clubs and institutions do too little to acculturate our young people, who are the footballers of tomorrow. It is unacceptable that we still have to live with such a phenomenon’.
What is the difference between this scandal and that of the 1980s?
‘Social media, which put kids more easily in contact with all kinds of realities. But there is also a lowest common denominator: players have a lot of free time on their hands, time that they use badly’.
Next seasonal break in mid-November: where will Inter be?
“I don’t know. But today it’s better to be hunters than hares. Tactically, I prefer it that way’.
