MILAN - President Massimo Moratti spoke to journalists after this evening's shareholders' meeting.
That was a very emotional meeting with a lot of applause.
"That's quite normal. A change like this is capable of creating that sort of feeling in anyone who happens to be there. I appreciated it a lot, I really did - all the applause and everyone being so nice. But I'm still much more grateful to them for their patience than what they showed today."
How do you feel?
"I feel fine. Now I need to deal one by one with all the steps required to finally see through this change, otherwise we'll just talk about it but keep going on as we are [smiling]."
What role do you see yourself having in the new Inter?
"I don't think there will be any drastic changes. I think the people coming in will be very careful to make sure they build something that is valid because they know very well that what they are handling here is a very important and very fast car, so they need to know how to drive it and they'll do it extremely carefully. I think they have the competence and the substance to do that well. I'm optimistic about their management."
You've made it clear that you haven't decided yet whether you'll stay on as president. Is that right?
"That's exactly right."
Could all that applause encourage you to remain as president?
"The applause is for the past, so I see it as a way of expressing a sort of fondness for me. We'll see. It was very nice anyway. We'll speak about it further down the line."
Is there anything that might convince you to decide one way or the other?
"Winning ten games in a row! [laughing]"
Can you confirm that the new board will consist of eight members, three of which will be yours?
"Yes, that's how it will start. It should be more or less like that."
And the closing will come on 15 November?
"Yes, on either 12 or 15 November. The 15th is more likely."
It was funny yesterday to hear Thohir say that Nicola Ventola was his favourite player.
"Thohir said it in a nice way, that's why he's so likeable. He said he was a player he knew, in particular because he had family ties with some Indonesians, and he spoke about it freely and spontaneously. Then of course you get experts and journalists saying you shouldn’t say these things, but I find it to be a nice thing to say. He didn’t say he was Inter’s best player. He said he knew Ventola and liked how he played. I find that to be quite pleasant."
One thing is certain: you’re both fans of Mazzarri.
"Undoubtedly. He speaks very highly of him and follows the games."
When you took over at Inter you said you were coming back to look after something your family had never left behind. Is that still the case? Are you still part of Inter?
"Objectively speaking we’re still a part since we have 30%, which is a good piece of the club. So naturally we’re there to take part in the managing and life of Inter through this participation. So we’re certainly not out of the picture. Later we’ll see what kind of participation, role, help or support we can provide that can be valuable. We don’t want to provide something we feel is valuable when perhaps it actually might not be. So it will depend on what type of relationship we’ll have."
Has Thohir told you that he wants to see a game at the stadium?
"Yes, and you wrote it in the papers. I think he wants to come for the meeting, a few days before then, so I guess he'll come to see the Livorno match."
You're on very friendly terms now, sending each other text messages.
"Yes, although the number got somewhat inflated. I actually received three [smiling]."
Can you tell us when you realised it was time to hand over to somebody else?
"Personally I've been saying it for a few years, 15 years at least... [smiling] and then one day it happened."
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