The demise of F.C. Internazionale Milano
Inter Milan FC started their Serie A sojourn in 1908 . Since their inception they have had a rather fruitful 103 years , winning 30 domestic titles including the league title 18 times , the Coppa Italia 7 times and the Super Coppa Italiana 5 times. The Nerazzuri can also boast of 3 proud European cups , 3 UEFA Cups , 2 Intercontinental Cups and a singular FIFA CLUB WORLD CUP.
Inter Milan was formed on account of schism from the Milan Football and cricket club. The players were unhappy about the tyrannical domination of AC Milan and wanted to break away leading to the formation of ‘Inter Milan’.
The early formative years of Inter Milan proved to be rather mixed . The club won their first scudetto in 1910 and a second Scudetto in 1920 . In 1922 , they lost all their early momentum and finished last with a paultry 11 points . Subsequently , Inter were summoned to be relegated . However, the Inter hierarchy made several pleas that playing Serie B would be financially detrimental to the Nerazurri’s plans . The FIGC came to Inter’s rescue and allowed them to play top-flight football. In 1928, they were forced to amalgamate into Milanese Unione Sportiva and were renamed AS Ambrosiana . Inter won their first coppa Italia in 1938-39 and emerged with a ne name ‘Internazionale Milano’ after World-War 2.
Inter Milan’s most glorious years were from the early 1950’s to the mid 1960’s . This era in Inter’s history was admirably called ‘la grande Inter’ (The Great Inter) . They adopted a unique style of play , incorporating a stopper followed by 3 defenders , a defensive midfielder , 2 central midfielders and 3 attackers . The three attackers were essentially forwards who could interchange positions . The Inter Milan style of football was later built on this defensive mould . Inter won seven league titles during this phase , 2 European Cups and 2 coppa-italia’s. Helenio Herarra’s autocratic leadership as head coach was the cornerstone of the Nerazurris successful period . Also , Inter scored a lot of their goals with swift counter-attacks after they absorbed all the opposition pressure .
In the 1980’s ., The Inter ship was steadied with calming influences like Andreas Brehme, Lothar Matthaus ,Jurgen Klinsmann and Ramon Diaz . Inter won their 11th and 12th scudetto in 1971 and 1980 respectively.
Giovanni Trappatoni was installed at the helm in 1986 and Inter won another Scudetto under his coaching in 1989. The Trappatoni system was very similar to the defensive system that the club was famous for. One of the tactics was the frustrate the opponents with hard tackling , possession football and effective counter-attacks . The Trappatoni era did not last long though and he was replaced in 1991 .
In 1995 , Massimo Moratti took over as President as much of the Inter euphoria had died down. He promised the fans many high-quality signings to restore Inter’s dominance. He stuck by his word as Luiz Ronaldo , Christian Vieri and Hernan Crespo were also signed . The 1990’s though proved to be barren for Inter as they failed to win a single Scudetto . Too much flamboyance coupled with lackluster defending and lack of leadership lead to their floundering league positions. Inter had given up the successful style of defensive football for some attractive football which lead an unsuccessful spell in the club’s history. Massimo Moratti was made scapegoat for Inter’s failings. With the onus on Moratti , he appointed Marcelo Lippi as the new Inter Coach . Lippi made some fine signings in Laurent Blanc and Angelo Peruzzi . Inspite of the signings , Inter performances on the pitch did not improve . Lippi was sacked and replaced by Marco Tardelli . The reasons for Inter’s shortcomings were hard to point as they had several good players. One of the reasons , Inters performances were overshadowed were the rise of Juventus and AC Milan. Tardelli failed to stamp his authority at Inter and was replaced by Hector Cuper. Inter fans are passionate about their football and the slow decay was evident to them. Fc Internazionale lacked a leader , they a Herrara , a Klinsmann or a Matthaus . There was no cohesion in the camp . Too many big-name players on massive salaries under-performing. Managers Cuper and Alberto Zaccharoni also failed to impress at the San Siro and the Nerazzuri ship was sinking . A dominant force in Italian football was now a pale shadow of its former self .
The resurrection began with the appointment of former Lazio boss Roberto Mancini. Mancini is a master tactician and is defense-minded. Roberto Mancini is a brilliant man-manager . A drastic change in fortunes followed after his appointment . Inter now looked and played like a team . A typical Mancini team is well-drilled defensively . Players like Javier Zanetti , Adriano , Esteban Cambiasso , Dejan Stankovic were at the top of their game as Inter won two scudetto under Mancini . They also went on an amazing 17 consecutive Seria A wins and looked invincible in the season . The Nerazurri public had a reason to smile once again . One blemish on the Mancini regime was the European defeat to Liverpool that cost him his job eventually. Moratti seemed ruthless and determined to get rid of a man that had galvanized a seemingly hapless side . Nevertheless , Mancini had left behind an inspiring squad in addition to the emergence of Italian Wonderkid Mario Balotelli .
Next in line was the effervescent Jose Mourinho . Jose Mourinho had a terrific reputation following successful spells at Porto and Chelsea. Based on face value , Mourinho was the just the kind of manager Inter needed . Like Mancini , Mourinho is also a master tactician and a good man-manager . Under Mourinho ,Inter won the Quintuple ( Super cup , scudetto, champions league , coppa italia ) . Much of the success was down to Mourinho’s defensive tactics and flexibility with strikers . The highlight of the Mourinho tenure was the European defeat of Champions Barcelona . Barcelona at their peak were beaten 3-2 on aggregate by a well-oiled Inter team . Every attacking Barcelona threat was nullified by Inter . It was one of the most impressive defensive displays in football.
Following a purple patch in the Inter history with Mancini and Mourinho , Rafa Benitez was to take charge of Inter as Jose Mourinho took up a lucrative contract with Real Madrid.
Benitez had just been sacked by Liverpool and needed a new challenge . Moratti was convinced that Benitez fit the bill . This appointment proved to be Inter downfall as Benitez lost the plot early in the season. He was unable to select his best Squad. The growing unrest among the players also meant that he had lost the dressing room. Another change in management soon after in the form of Leanardo did not help.
What Inter Milan need is stability . A manager that all the players respect , someone who has a short-term plan chalked out , a good motivator and an even better man managers . The Inter dressing room is filled a with many star players which is equivalent to big egos . A real leader is required to stem that .Inter look lost in this current Seria A season.
If Claudio Ranieri manages to bring the glory days back to the San Siro remains to be seen.
Mayank Adhye
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