Inter Milan eyeing sacked Benitez as replacement for ‘Special One’

June 4, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Milan, June 4(ANI): Italian football giants Inter Milan have publicly praised Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez, increasing the possibilities of the sacked Spaniard taking over at the San Siro.

Inter Milan President Massimo Moratti is understood to have identified Benitez as his “ideal candidate” and first choice to replace Jose Mourinho following his six million pound pay-off as Liverpool manager.

“We really like Rafa Benitez. He has been in our favour since the Champions League final in Istanbul [in 2005],” The Sun quoted Gabriele Oriali, Inter director, as saying.

Mourinho, who led Inter to an unprecedented treble of Serie A, the Coppa Italia and the Champions League, decided to leave the club and join Real Madrid to fulfil his dream of becoming the only coach to win the Champions League with three different clubs.

Benitez’s six-year reign at the Anfield was over, when he was sacked following Liverpool’s worst Premier League season since 1999.

The decision was taken after Liverpool Chairman Martin Broughton and Managing Director Christian Purslow held talks with Benitez, and came to the conclusion that he had lost the support of senior players at the club. (ANI)

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Inter upset as Mourinho steals limelight in finest hour

May 29, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Inter Milan should be basking in the glory of a record-breaking season but instead the manner of Jose Mourinho’s departure has left a nasty taste in the mouth.

A first Champions League triumph since 1965 and an unprecedented Italian treble have been overshadowed by Mourinho’s unashamed desire to join Real Madrid and his verbal volleys against what he saw as the cynical Italian game.

The outspoken Portuguese all but announced he was leaving for Real when Inter were still celebrating on the pitch after their 2-0 European Cup final win over Bayern Munich last Saturday.

Winning the most-coveted of trophies at Real’s Santiago Bernabeu stadium only served to increase the drama which envelopes the brash former Chelsea coach, leading fans around the world to love him and hate him in equal measure.

Inter president Massimo Moratti, who on Friday agreed a compensation deal to allow Mourinho to join Real, had very little time to enjoy his team’s stunning achievements.

“Certainly his timing was not great,” Moratti, who sees England coach Fabio Capello and Fulham boss Roy Hodgson as potential replacements, told reporters.

“Both for him and the fans, he could have opted for a course of action a little different.”

Mourinho cried when Inter wrapped up a fifth straight Serie A title on the final day of the season against Siena and the waterworks from the usually cool coach were also on full power after the Bayern game.

He has spoken often of his attachment to the Inter team and fans, despite his hatred of the Italian media and soccer establishment, but his swift departure was not a surprise given he did the same thing when leaving Porto for Chelsea in 2004 following their European Cup success.

Despite not managing to fully appreciate his club’s moment of glory because of Mourinho, Moratti would not have swapped his coach for the world given what they have achieved.

The club president knew he was signing a livewire when Mourinho rolled up two years ago.

“He worked hard, seriously, with all his soul and he won so much. This situation does not ruin at all my esteem and friendliness towards him as a person. The door is always open,” Moratti added.

(Editing by Ed Osmond; to query or comment on this story email sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)

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Real secure Mourinho as coach after Inter deal

May 29, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Real Madrid will present Jose Mourinho as their coach on Monday after agreeing an undisclosed compensation deal with Inter Milan, the Spanish club said on Friday.

Inter president Massimo Moratti and his Real counterpart Florentino Perez met to thrash out details of the package that will free Mourinho to leave and join the nine-times European champions after a treble-winning season in Italy.

While Spanish and Italian media reported that Inter would receive eight million euros ($9.80 million), a statement from the Italian champions said: “Real will eventually have to pay all the clause in the contract.”

Inter added that exchange of players could form part of the deal.

Mourinho led Inter to three trophies last season, culminating in their Champions League final victory over Bayern Munich at Real’s Bernabeu Stadium.

Real turned to him after sacking Manuel Pellegrini this week following a season with no trophies for a team that had 250 million euros spent on it last summer.

“We are convinced that we need a fresh impulse and we are convinced that Jose Mourinho is the right person to take on the job,” Perez said at the time.

The move for Mourinho marks a change in direction for Perez, who has preferred to invest money in the world’s best players rather than high-profile coaches in the past.

STRONG MAN

“(We looked to Mourinho) for his prestige, for the personality he has, for his great ability to absorb the pressure and for the leadership Madrid needs,” Perez’s right-hand man Jorge Valdano said in a radio interview earlier on Friday.

“We lacked a strong man in a moment of transition like this.”

Real tripped up in the big games last season, losing in the ‘clasicos’ against Barcelona and in the Champions League first knockout round against Olympique Lyon.

Mourinho, 47, has a reputation as a motivator, is a great tactician and is strong enough to ride out the inevitable ups and downs of managing a side under the local media’s microscope.

With Porto he won the UEFA Cup and the European Cup in 2004, and he won back-to-back league titles with Chelsea before moving to Italy.

He will be expected to get the most out of compatriot Cristiano Ronaldo but is likely to demand more of a say in planning at the club.

Pellegrini spoke of being isolated from the decision-making process when it came to planning the team, and Jose Antonio Camacho walked out on the club in 2004 complaining of interference in team affairs from above.

Spanish media have already speculated that Real will move back into the transfer market, with Inter’s Brazilian fullback Maicon and Benfica’s Argentine winger Angel Di Maria among the names linked with the club.

(Editing by Clare Fallon and Pritha Sarkar; To query or comment on this story email sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)

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Mourinho’s passage to Real far from secured – Moratti

May 26, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Inter Milan coach Jose Mourinho’s dream move to Real Madrid is far from a done deal, Inter president Massimo Moratti said on Tuesday.

Moratti said his club’s relationship with Mourinho was all but over following dinner between the pair on Monday but the Champions League and treble winners are not giving up the Portuguese easily.

Reports have said Inter want around 16 million euros ($19.55 million) in compensation from Real if they move for Mourinho given his deal finishes in 2012.

“No, what do you mean it’s done, it’s the opposite. We haven’t even started,” Moratti told reporters before being asked if Wednesday would be the decisive day.

“No, it will take a bit of time.”

Some Inter fans are upset with Mourinho for the timing of his comments wishing to leave amidst their stunning treble success and feel he has stolen the limelight from the team.

The club president had been quoted in the media as saying he had been “taken for a ride” by Mourinho but Moratti firmly denied saying any such thing.

“He achieved all the objectives he had to achieve. The annoying part will be now, the pain of finding someone new,” he said, adding there was no particular name in the frame.

Fulham’s ex-Inter boss Roy Hodgson, Liverpool coach Rafa Benitez and former Inter assistant coach Sinisa Mihajlovic, who surprisingly quit Catania on Monday, have all been linked with the Serie A champions.

(Writing by Mark Meadows; Editing by Ed Osmond; To query or comment on this story email sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)

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