MILAN – Appearing on the first episode of Gazzetta TV’s Senza Appello talkshow, Roberto Mancini touched on a variety of topics linked to all things Nerazzurri. The interview kicked off by revisiting Mancini’s decision to accept Inter’s proposal to have him return to the club: "It was a decision taken out of respect and recognition for what we won together in the past."
It’s certainly been a busy few months for Mancini since, and the Nerazzurri boss was asked about the future outlook for the club: "Can we fight for the Scudetto next season? The players are working hard, despite the odd mistake. The team has really improved, both in terms of their mentality and the level of their play. We’re building a solid foundation, and if we prepare well and bring a couple of players in we can get even better.
"I’m sure that we’ll compete for the Scudetto next year. When I came in, the squad was low on morale because of some negative results, but I found a very willing group of players and they’ve improved extremely quickly. You don’t often get a group capable of making such progress, and it certainly wasn’t easy to change things with the season in full flow," explained Mancini.
There were also a few questions about the Inter defence: "Can we improve at the back? We’re working on it – it’s not easy to switch to a back four after such a long time playing with a different system. In any case, it’s wrong to always blame the defenders. Defending is the job of the entire team and my hope is that the lads all improve as one."
Mancini was then asked about top-scorer Mauro Icardi and newly returned full-back Davide Santon: "Icardi is getting better with every passing week. He’s improved no end in the last two months. I’m really happy as I told him he needed to improve his play outside of the box and that’s exactly what he’s doing.
"Santon? His experience in the Premier League has made him a stronger, calmer player than he was when he left Serie A. He’s found some consistency and we’re all very pleased with the way he’s going about everything," declared the Inter coach.
The interview concluded with a look forward to the next transfer window: "I’m sure we’ll do some good business. Yaya Toure? He’s played in almost every league, except for Germany and Italy. If, as seems to be the case, he wants to try Serie A we’ll look into the possibility, but it won’t be easy. He’s a player with incredible technical ability. I’ve not come across many like him."
