PINZOLO - Esteban Cambiasso was interviewed by Thomas Villa for RAI's "Domenica Sportiva".
Read what he had to say in full, here on inter.it:
Esteban, you're one of the most experienced players in this Inter side. First of all, how are you?
"Good. Tired, but I'm well."
What's the new Inter looking like?
"We'll see, it's still hard to say. We're certainly establishing the right foundations. We have a coach who really wants to do well, he's trying to convey his ideas to the squad, and we're trying to take them on board as quickly as possible. We know we're on to something here but it's also true that at a club like Inter you don't have much time."
A lot has been made of the strenuous work Walter Mazzarri has put you through on this training camp. What exactly have you worked on?
"We've worked well. It's hard to discuss it because you never stop working at a training camp. What we expect is to see the benefits of this hard graft when it counts, when the team needs to be at the top when the big games come around."
Have you worked on different things compared to previous years? Have you done a lot more running?
"Every coach has his own 'bible' and Mazzarri's brought his, it's full of the experience he's acquired in every team he's coached. Obviously he believes in his coaching style and we're trying to adapt as best we can to what he wants. Every coach is different. All we can do is be open to his ideas."
From the outside Mazzarri looks like a hard task master. You've had a lot of coaches, what's he like?
"He's a coach who wants the best for his team. Clearly everyone's personality is different. Thankfully we're not all the same, else the world would be a very boring place. Above all he's someone who, in his position, wants the best for Inter."
Has anything in particular struck you?
"I'm not someone who talks a lot about coaches. Anything I said while he's my coach would be seen as me trying to curry favour. So I'll try and stay out of that."
Mazzarri's playing style seems to be based on a back three. How do you think you'll play this system?
"I hope we do it well. Clearly the coach has a playing style that he's employed for years, albeit with a few tweaks here and there on how high up the pitch the top of the midfield is. His formation is essentially made up of three central defenders, with two wingbacks and lots of pace down the flanks. We've seen all of this as opponents and now we'll try to take that on board playing for him."
We saw you go through the same moves several times during the training camp: how effective can this type of work be?
"We hope it's very useful. Clearly repeating things allows you to 'mechanise' certain moves, understand and also learn the movements of your team-mates by heart. This then allows you to speed up play. If someone already knows where their team-mate is or where they'll receive the ball, then you can do a lot more moves quicker and it allows you to gain time over your opponents, which is hugely important in modern football."
Are Juventus too far out in front?
"That was last season. But the only relevance last season has is deciding on who will feature in the Super Cup. I've always looked at it like that, even when we joined up for pre-season as Italian champions. What you achieved the previous season only counts for something in your or the fans' morale. The Inter fans have shown incredible support for us, or rather not incredible, because we know what they're like, but it was certainly unexpected for many. They descended on Pinzolo for a fortnight, with numbers peaking over the two weekends. All of this can have a bearing on a positive or negative campaign, but once the season starts we'll be on zero points and whoever earns the most will win the title."
When you played against Napoli under Mazzarri, what was the most difficult aspect from a tactical perspective?
"I can't reveal that without giving an advantage to our opponents. All I can say is obviously they weren't easy matches."
What are your thoughts on president Moratti possibly giving up a share in the club?
"First and foremost we need to see if this actually comes to pass. You need to wait for this to actually be a fact before talking about it. I'm sure that if he were to take a decision on whether or not to sell, he would first consider what's best for Inter, then what's best for him. And that is a guarantee for Inter fans, and for us guys who've become Interisti too."
How much does this team miss Javier Zanetti?
"A lot. He's always there because we speak to each other almost every day. Thankfully he's well, his leg's getting better as predicted. We'll see him again soon in the United States. Of course we miss him because he's the main man every time we begin pre-season, but we keep him in mind and I think the same goes for all the people here at the training camp in Pinzolo."
And how is Diego Milito's leg?
"His leg is healing, just as Mudingayi's is. We hope they can both come back, I won't say 'soon', because I don't think that's the right word when it comes to an injury. I hope they can both come back fit, so that they can go back to producing what they had done for the club before the various injuries. We are confident and the whole medical staff are working hard and professionally, just as the two players are. We hope to have them back, not as soon as possible, but as fit as possible."
Barely a month ago it looked like Inter were flatlining. If you had to put your finger on it, what's changed in a little over a month which has brought with it such confidence and enthusiasm?
"That's football, it changes all the time. If I start to think about the fact that only two or three years have passed since our spectacular season, it actually feels like ten or fifteen have gone by. You must always try to rally and think about the targets that are in front of you. What's in the past no longer matters, whether you reached your targets or not. Football's always been like that. What's changed at Inter is that we've begun a new adventure with lots of people who have already been through a lot, others a bit less, and some newcomers. Now we're all chipping in, new and old faces alike, to try and be successful."
Mazzarri has said he wouldn't take third place if it was offered to him now. Would you?
"All I can say is that over the years in football we've seen a lot of teams begin in pole position in the transfer market, and the Inter fans know this well because they experienced a number of pre-seasons in which we were nailed-on champions and yet come the end of the season we never took home the Scudetto. So I'm quite wary of who's favourites in the summer. How far we can go will depend on the ambition of a club like Inter and the players who wear this shirt once or a thousand times and it's about wanting to win for this team. Everyone must realise that we go out on to the pitch to win. You can't set targets anything other than the top when you're at a club like this."
So the top target is the Scudetto. Do you begin the season with this idea at least in the back of your minds?
"I don't think like that. All I can say is we'll try to win our first game, then the second, the third and so on..."
