Derby's vote

Handanovich, nv: There were 70,000 supporters plus one at Meazza Stadium. Maybe yesterday was the kind of match he expected to face when he signed for us.

Juan, 5: He's not a wing defensor and we've had another opportunity to find out. No offensive phase (even when he could cross he chose to pass back) and also bad defensive phase (Milan's only few attacks came from his side). Furthermore, I'd like to say that yesterday he didn't do any important mistakes but see again the Milan's goal and look at him: who is he marking? Himself?

Vidic, 7: Even though he has played against none, he has showed up the fact that he's our best defensor. Punctual, focused, clear and even Ranocchia has benefitted. Captain.

Ranocchia, 6.5: He hasn't the personality for being our leader and he needs a good partner to play well. With Juan he plays bad, with Vidic he plays well. 

D'Ambrosio, 6: He isn't Maicon so we can't expect a lot from him, but something more than the simplest things yes.

Gnoukori, 7: No fear for his debut in the most important match of the year. Impressive, focused, good for a debutant. He gives the impression that he only wants to play, the environment isn't important. A potential good player in two years (he must improve his body).

Medel, 7: We can't think of him as Pirlo or Xavi but he has had the merit to let the middle line up. Important.

Kovacic, 5/7: His double vote is simple to explain. 5 if we consider him a player with more than 100 matches among professionists because he hasn't played well, not at all. 7 if we consider him a youngster at his first important match, as Gnoukori (by comparing them, Gnou has played better).

Hernanes, 6.5: He's lke a lamp that doesn't work very well: one moment the lamp is on, then it's off for 10 minutes. However he shows he can be something different in the future.

Icardi, 6: A bit under his normal standard but always dangerous.

Palacio, 6.5: Nothing crucial, but the sensation is the good player we used to see is coming back.

Shaqiri, 6.5: Maybe he's passing a little flexion but with him on the pitch (and Hernanes in the middle and Kovacic on the bench) we have played much more offensive and dangerously. We must play with him.

Obi, nv: Nothing special.

Before the derby

Handanovich

D'Ambrosio, Ranocchia, Vidic, Juan

Kovacic, Medel, Gnoukori

Hernanes

Icardi, Palacio

These are the 11 players that are about to play the derby. Has Mancini done the right choices?

I really hope, but I can't notice that he has given the midfield's keys to Milan because they have more physical player in the middle: De Jong, Poli, Van Ginkel could lead over there. 

I'm not even sure that two young players as Kova and Gnou could protect our defense. Ok, Guarin can't do it as well, but at least he has a strong body.

I hope Mancini knows what he's doing because tonight we must win, not for the table or for a place in the Europe League but for our morale, our self-esteem, our objectives.

I'm afraid Mancini has given a present to Inzaghi, exactly what as he did against Wolfsburg when he put Juan in the middle knowing that he was our weakpoint. That mistake cost our elimination.

Let's hope...

Anyway, go Kova! Go Gnou!!!

Go Inter!!!!!

It was so simple...

I must think that Verona is our perfect victim. Even in our worst moment under Mazzarri's guide we beat it so I should think that they are like a medicin for us.

We played a good match, nothing special, just a normal match transformed into a good one only because Juan didn't do his usual fatal mistake (how have we improved our defence since Mancini put Juan on the wing and not in the middle? As I've always written, every other defensor we got is better than him) and because we played a bit more dinamically, physically and mindly.

With Juan in the middle of the defense we used to start from a 0-1 or 0-2 and it's difficult to win if your oppositors take advantage from your weak side and score goals. 

A better defence, Palacio at the 50% of his standard and we seemed a good team.

Furthermore, another difference with the match against Parma was the way we approached at the match. Not just as 'we're stronger, you're poor, so we're going to win easily' but we put something more on the pitch. The hearth? No, just our running. You can be the best player but if you don't run you can lose against everybody.

Is it enough to climb some positions? I guess so... I hope so.

@Inter.it

Moratti or not Moratti, this is the dilemma

The latest news refers to a possible comeback of Massimo Moratti as Inter's President. He'd have the idea to find tons of euros to get back that 70% he sold to Thohir only 14 months ago. The method would be simple: asking 1,000 euros to almost 30,000 supporters, every year. Alongside he'd ask a loan to some banks in order to repay what Thohir has put in the club.

At least, this is what some Italian newspapers write on. I guess the reality is very different for some reasons:

- selling an asset of you business for 100 and then buying it back for 150 (Thohir hasn't given money for free, he's negotiated an interest rate) is a foolish financial operations;

- no Banks will borrow 200/300 billions into Inter's company, because if someone could be interested on it, probabily it'd have already done it;

- Thohir wants to expand his business and his fame (and of Indonesians') in the Europe market and Inter is his vehicle.

Anyway, the point is: do we really want him back? Putting a part the Mancini and Mourinho's era is impossible to forget what Moratti has done for Inter.

Disastrous market players, unexperted managers, wrong choices, normal players considered and payed as top players (Recoba...), a financial management that almost brought us to the hell... 

We started to win when he gave white paper to Mancini and Mourinho walking himself out. A part the decisions to hire Mancini and Mourinho he managed the club as his own toy and not as a company.

Actually we need a company style and Thohir is the right person at the right moment. I like his business plan, I like the fact that he has hired manager from other top team and not from his family (like Milly Moratti as our Creative manager), I like his ideas. I like the idea that we're becoming less milanese but more Internazionale.

@Inter.it

Chasing Mateo

When Mateo Kovacic arrived was one if those day in January when winter shows his strenght. He was just something more than a teenager but few days before Snejder had been sold and the t-shirt number ten was given to this young boy from Croatia. He had good reviews from international critics and he was considered a potential future champion. In those four months he played in every position in the midfield and he wasn't bad but he was helpes by two facts: Stramaccioni relied on him and that Inter had a really poor quality that he managed to stand up.

When Mazzari arrived sonething changed for Kovacic. Mazzarri didn't have/didn't want big quality in the middle and thought to transform Kova into a copy of Hamsik. After one year and half this experiment was abandoned because Kovacic has a different game style and because of the sacking of Mazzarri. Since the arrival of Mancini, a trainer that loves high talented players with good quality, everyone thought it could be a new beginning for him but Mancini has suddenly started to play with the 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-1-2 or 4-3-3.

Kovacic has become confused and with the arrival of Brozovic and Shaqiri and the growth of Guarin hr has lost the touch with the field.

Chasing Kovacic, where is he?

I guess he has five big problems: once he will fix them up he'll be a top player.

1) The shoot skill

A player like him should score at least 10 goals a year but for scoring so much he should shoots at list 4 or 5 times more, but Kovacic shoots just once or twice every two matches.

He should be trained on this.

2) His role on the pitch

Which is his role? As Pirlo? As Iniesta? As Pogba or Marchisio? Nobody knows, neither him. His trainer should fond a role for him and insists on it. Having a clear role helps in practising on it.

3) His style with the ball

I guess he should pass the ball as soon as possible, he shoul avoiding to dribble 10 opponent every time he touches the ball.

He reminds me the first Zanetti when he use to dribble many opponents without think of them.

4) The number 10 on the t-shirt

That number is too heavy for him. Matthaeus, Ronaldo, Snejder, for example, wore that tshirt but Kovacic isn't so soccerable mature. I guess choicing a new number could be really useful for him.
5) The personality
What is the difference between a player as Cristiano Ronaldo and another one with a huge talent that lose himself in some minor leagues? His determination and his willing. Cristiano Ronaldo wanted to become a top player since his youth and he has worked hardly on this task, day by day. A lose game? It doesn't matter, every fall is the start for a new growth. The incident is only a step, it isn't the end. Does Mateo have the right personality to become a top player?

I really hope he will figure them out as soon as possible because he can become a top player somewhere else. We can wait for him, of course, but we can't wait him forever. He has 10 matches to show us he has got the top player's skin, otherwise we can say hi to him on next summer.

©Inter.it

It's difficult to score a goal (and win) if you don't shoot

The match against Parma wasn't different from other matches along this season. We had the ball possession for a long time, we passed the ball from one player to another then to another then to another then to another and so on. Is this a good way to platy soccer? I don't know. I like a soccer played in vertical, with players that switch from a position to another one, running in an apparently chaos that it's a well-organised tactic instead.
I don't know why but since Guardiola's game style seems that every team in the world should play with the ball possession.
This could be fine but you need the right players. You need players like Robben, Ribery, Messi, Eto'o, Iniesta, Pedro or other that know how to dribble one or two players, that know how to act among three players dribbling everyone is opposing. Do we have this kind of players? No.
Meanwhile you need some midfielders that know how to play the ball profitable. Players like Pirlo, Fabregas, Thiago Alcantara, Xavi and so on. Do we have this kind of players? No.
This means that playing as Barcellona or Bayern Munich even if you have players that are completely unfit to play on that way is crazy but at the end this isn't the point.

The essence of our problem is that we don't have the courage to shoot. It's really strange and I don't understand why but we don't shoot. We play the ball, we pass it thousands of times, but we don't shoot. Against Parma we shot dangerously just two or three times and I want to be kind because I don't really remember some savers from their goalkeeper.

I continue to say that we should play with the set up Mancini wants to use next year (4-2-3-1) using the players we already know that will remain with us (Handanovic, D'Ambrosio/Nagatomo-Vidic-Felipe/Andreolli-Santon in the defense, Brozovic-Medel in the middle, Guarin-Shaqiri-Palacio behind Icardi) but everything is useless if we don't shot.

In the area, outside the area, from our defense, from wherever we like but we MUST shoot. If we don't shoot, we can't hope to score a goal. It's the base.

©Inter.it