Gianfranco Matteoli gave an interview to the Corriere dello Sport touching on various topics in Italian football, from the situation at Cagliari to Inter‘s prospects this season.
The former midfielder spoke harshly about the Esposito case: “I won’t get into the details of the negotiations with the club, but I find the medical certificate for emotional stress scandalous. Stress is what the farmer I saw this morning going to the fields under a scorching sun experiences, or my father who used to get up at dawn to milk the sheep. There needs to be respect, I would never have dreamed of doing such a thing.”
Regarding the league, Matteoli has no doubts about who the team to beat is: “Inter is still the strongest. Napoli can give them trouble, but they start behind.” It’s a different story when it comes to European competitions: “It’s a different matter. On the international stage, you face giants. Everything is more complicated.”
The former player also analyzed the crisis in Italian football: “We have forgotten to teach technique to our young players. It takes years to refine it, teaching tactics is much easier. But without basic technique, where do you think you’re going?”
On the topic of the modern game’s intensity, Matteoli is clear: “Nonsense. Players from the past seemed slow from afar. When you faced them, it was a different story. I remember when I was at Como and we got promoted to Serie A, our coach, the late Burgnich, organized a match with his former Inter teammates, there were Facchetti, Corso, Suarez. I would stop during the match just to watch them, true phenomena.”
Italian champion with Inter in ’89, Matteoli took his first steps at Como and commented on the Fabregas phenomenon: “An incredible reality. In my day Como used to sell, now they buy.”
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