PRATO - Following the press conference to introduce the new partnership between FC Internazionale and AC Prato 1908, Nerazzurri sporting director Piero Ausilio spoke to the assembled press.
Tell us about this agreement and why Prato?
"We chose Prato based on the people, an important family who have worked in football and Lega Pro for many years and always done well. They've had good results and economically it's a well-run club with values and they've always worked well with young players. There's a culture of - and they're used to - working with youngsters coming in from other clubs, they have an excellent youth academy, and a coach I rate. We've all rated him for some time because we were lucky enough to work with him for a number of years at Inter and he's one of the people who helped Inter develop and launch the professional careers of players like Mario Balotelli, Destro, Santon, and Biabiany. Perhaps I'm forgetting some but the fact Esposito's here also played a role in our decision."
What can you tell us about your whistle-stop tour to Spain, are there any developments involving Mario Suarez and Guarin?
"I went there but it wasn't necessarily linked to a certain team or situation. I had the chance to meet people there and did so. I wasn't able to in Milan and so we preferred to meet them there as it was more convenient. Is it a difficult deal? With regards to Mario Suarez, it's my understanding that he's not for sale. Talking about footballers whose clubs haven't put on the market is like talking about nothing. He's a player that we might be interested in because of the position he plays but it's not feasible as Atletico Madrid have never placed him on the transfer list."
What about Song at Barcelona?
"There's nothing in it."
Any movement on Behrami?
"Mazzarri has never asked us for anyone, like any coach he talks to the sporting director. We met each other this week, I went to to see him and we spent some time together. We spoke about the team, the pre-season trainng camp and other matters that we usually discuss on the phone. We used this week to meet up, it's a tough period for transfers, it's slow, because the World Cup has definitely slowed everything down. But that's the same for every team and I don't recall seeing many deals over the last few days."
Is M'Vila still a target?
"M'Vila is an opportunity, we're in talks with Rubin. He's shown he'd be very happy to come to Inter and he's a guy who's displayed great desire and determination. If the money's right he could be an 'opportunity'."
On the subject of the World Cup, are you keeping tabs on anyone in particular? Xhaka was mentioned, as well as Guarin being sold."
"We watch the World Cup because it's an important competition, in all honesty we know most of the players, we've tracked their progress in their respective leagues. There are a few surprises who can come from certain countries which from a logical perspective are hard to follow live. We're curious, we have our scouts at work, they've split up their workload and in a few days' time we might begin to review their findings."
Would you like to comment on Italy and Balotelli?
"I think everything and more has been said on this subject, so I'd prefer not to. I have my idea about it: I believe that in football, like in life, when you do something well or badly the credit or blame are always to be shared around among everyone. It's even more the case when it comes to a football team in which there are a number of individuals who interact. In this case I'm talking about the players, staff, FA, everyone, in the good times and bad. When we won the World Cup a whole host of individuals got the credit, now we see that things didn't go well but it's certainly not more the fault of some players than others."
Could a deal for Jovetic become a reality?
"As far as I'm aware he's not available. He's a Manchester City player, they bought him last year, paid a lot of money and have no intention of selling him."
