APPIANO GENTILE – "Our rationale has always been to improve the team and it always will be. When you sign a player you're always convinced you're making the best choice, but then perhaps sometimes it turns out to be the wrong one. But I can say without conceit that at Inter in these years we have done more things right than wrong. The goal is to improve continuously, and this is the rationale used by myself, Marco Branca, the coach and president Moratti."
And it was on this premise during Prima Serata on Inter Channel that sporting director Piero Ausilio began to rattle off names that are more or less known, real or presumed Nerazzurri transfer targets. Starting with the full-back role, Ausilio was shown footage of Sebastian Jung, Aleksandar Kolarov and Bacary Sagna. Among the three, the director spoke only about the German defender at Eintracht Frankfurt: "He's a young lad. I can’t deny that we're following him. But just because we're observing him doesn't necessarily mean we've taken steps to sign him."
Next it was on to the centre of defence, with Ausilio explaining that of the three players on the screen – Angelo Ogbonna, Vlad Chiriches and Igor Lichnovsky – the one who is the most ready "is definitely Ogbonna". Then among the midfield options displayed the sporting director spoke only of Quintero, "because it just so happens that I've already spoken about the lad. We tried to do something with him, but the problem is when you're dealing with talented youngsters with non-EU passports you have to make choices related to the moment. Pescara took advantage of the fact that they could get him on their books. We tried but we would have had to structure the move in collaboration with other clubs, and in the end we had to give up. We're still following him however, and I'm glad he came to Italy because he's a young, talented kid who's doing well."
On the subject of Pescara, Marco Verratti's name was also brought up. Ausilio had this to say about the Italy midfielder now plying his trade at PSG: "He's an excellent footballer and I think a key moment in his development came when Zeman moved him into a different position. He used to play as an attacking midfielder, just like Pirlo, the difference being that Verratti dropped into a deeper role at a very young age. Carlo Ancelotti had the idea of playing him in front of the defence and now he's become one of the best. I hope he can follow in Pirlo's footsteps, he's got bags of quality, but life is about moments. When we had the chance to chat to the boy, last July, we had invested a lot of money in a player who will be the future of Inter, Guarin. Then Gargano and Mudingayi, who are sure to be very useful to Inter's cause, were brought in on loan. They are totally different players to Verratti but they fit the profile we needed. I think with Verratti it was hoped, and not only by us, to gain a bit of time, but when clubs like PSG come in, as they did with Lavezzi and Lucas, you can't really do much. PSG always swoop to snap up our targets after we've done the scouting work? That's something I must ask Leonardo about... [smiling] I'm joking of course, he does his job very well."
You can read more from sporting director Piero Ausilio's exclusive interview on Prima Serata in an hour's time, just as the programme goes to air on Inter Channel.
