MILAN – Riccardo Ferri is an indelible part of Inter’s past, having won a Scudetto, an Italian Super Cup and two UEFA Cups during his 13-year stay with the club. Yet Ferri plays an equally important role in Inter’s present, through his current role of Inter Academy Florida Director.
"Building interest in football and helping it to grow using the Inter name is a great challenge. There is a strong South American influence in the Florida area, so the quality of the players is higher than in central and northern parts of the US. Our goal is to train coaches, share knowledge and help the youngsters," explained Ferri, appearing on Inter Channel’s Countdown programme.
Despite living across the pond, Ferri still keeps a close eye on goings on at his old club: "I follow Inter from a couple of thousand miles away. I think the team still needs to be completed, but it’s certainly hard to score goals against us. Mancini has the ability to complete the squad, working alongside the club. I get the impression he adapts his side to the opposition – he has great ability and knows exactly what he wants to achieve. We’re top of the table and that speaks volumes about the calibre of coach we have."
There is a mouth-watering clash against Napoli at the Stadio San Paolo lurking on the horizon, but before that the Nerazzurri must contest a home match against Serie A debutants Frosinone: "The trip to Naples is going to be tough, but we need to be wary of Frosinone. It’s important that we prove we can adapt to playing against smaller teams brimming with desire and show the same attitude and focus we’ll need against Napoli."
Inter may be on top of Serie A, but there has been criticism of the way the Nerazzurri have been playing this season. Ferri, however, seemed nonplussed by the negative reviews: "In Italy we always try to seek out that one thing that’s not going perfectly. They can criticise all they like – if you win every game 1-0 then you stay top. The team needs to isolate itself from the criticism and Mancini is the right coach to manage this situation. You see how strong a side is from the way it sticks together in the tough times."
Being a former defender himself, Ferri couldn’t help but run the rule over the current Miranda-Murillo centre-back pairing: "We’ve come on in leaps and bounds in defence. These players can become the stalwarts of the Inter backline. We needed players like them. Plus, we have one of the best keepers in the world."
Last but not least, Ferri was asked if he saw any similarities between this Inter side and the one he played in under Giovanni Trapattoni: "They’re both teams that sit deep, keep it nice and compact at the back and break at speed. But I think comparing teams from years apart is difficult."
