APPIANO GENTILE – The eve of Inter v Neftci "is a peculiar one",
stated Andrea Stramaccioni during today’s press conference as he sat beside
Marko Livaja.
"This isn’t a moment in which I want to use all the first team players.
Due to our condition, I would prefer to make it to Sunday with the most energy
possible. So I decided to go with a large number of Primavera players, who
yesterday played against Rosenborg however. In tomorrow morning’s training I’ll
choose the lads that I’ll use from all of them, although they’ll remain here
with the team tonight, while the ‘big boys’ will come directly to training
tomorrow morning. After that I’ll decide whom to call up. But for me it’s crucial that the youngest of them stay with the team tonight for the experience. However, using young
players doesn’t mean choosing chaos but rather taking advantage of an important
resource."
Then, a few inevitable questions about Wesley Sneijder: "I hadn’t expected a question about Sneijder! Really, you guys caught me off guard!" joked the coach, who then went on to say: "I think I’ve spoken exhaustively on this subject, and the president has also spoken on it numerous times. I repeat that all of the choices from here on out, regarding every Inter player, are just my assessments. Therefore, the choice regarding Sneijder comes from the coach. He’s doing well, very well, training with his team-mates like everyone else. And with this I request that you ask me no further questions on the matter. How would the club react if I were to play him? Why? Are the club and I two different entities? I don’t understand… [smiling]. At any rate, it’s a choice made by the coach. I don’t know how to say it, to repeat it; I make my choices and I take responsibility for them. Regarding the players and beyond, I hope that the president respects these choices [smiling]. However, [still smiling] if he supported the substitution of Zanetti then I think he’ll support any choice…" The smiles were then shared throughout the press room.
