MILAN - Inter's sporting director Piero Ausilio has appeared as a guest on Radio 1's Radio Anch'io Sport. Ausilio answered questions from those in the studio and listeners, discussing a number of hot topics.
On the club's season targets:
"When you start the season, you must always think about doing the best you can. Inter have to think about winning every game because that needs to be the mindset at a club like ours. There's been a huge turnover in the playing staff and we have started a process. We began further back on the starting grid in August, with everyone expecting us to finish fifth or lower. We're fourth, we have more points and we're higher up the table than at the same stage last season. We're on track with what we planned for at the start of the season."
Future and the Champions League:
"Trying to get back into the Champions League was a target this season and it still is. We'll go for it in every game because we're seeing surprises all over the place. We need to go for it and we'll see where we are come the end. We'll try to strengthen further to try and quickly return to the Champions League."
Could Moratti become president again?
"I try to do the best job I can and my staff and I don't deal with club politics. I worked very well with Mr Moratti and do likewise with president Thohir, who's the majority shareholder and wants to continue at Inter. He's said he's looking for minority investors. We're planning Inter's future and we're doing so with president Thohir."
Financial Fair Play and transfers:
"We haven't yet spent the proceeds from the sale of Guarin. We'll spend them in two years' time. Eder has joined on a two-year loan, that was an unusual deal. However, we received the funds for Guarin up front. There's no doubt as to the quality of our forward players. Perhaps we expected a few more goals, they've not been as clinical as in other seasons.
"We might have signed a midfielder. We even identified a target but there wasn't a deep-lying playmaker with the right price tag available on the market. We lacked goals at that stage and brought in a forward who offered us something different. Eder can play in a 4-2-3-1, he's a forward for the Italian national team and he had scored 12 goals. He will have lots of chances going forward to show how good he is. We've never shown any interest in Biglia. I rate the player highly. Try and ask Lotito if Biglia's for sale and how much he'd cost."
On Mancini:
"We've decided to restructure the new Inter and this process will have highs and lows. We're seeing results, we have 13 more points than last season and we're five places higher. Some quality players have joined the club but we've turned over 50% of the playing staff. We'll move forward with Mancini and this group of players and, if we can, we'll improve things in the future. We all assess our performances and Mancini gave himself a low score out of ten to further motivate the players. We can all improve, be it the sporting director, the coach or the players."
Budget and plans:
"We just to have keep going in this direction, there's no alternative. Inter have a "contract" with UEFA, if you will, and must respect certain parameters via a policy of self-financing. You can compete in the football world like this, it's a more cautious approach that we've been following for a couple of years now. Perhaps our progress has been a bit slower but you must follow UEFA regulations."
Will Inter have more Italian players going forward?
"We're trying to do that and Eder is a sign of that. It's not easy and when you talk about Italians you need to broaden the concept. Biabiany and Icardi moved to Italy when they were 16 and were developed in this country. There are some good Italian players and we'd like to sign them if possible but there are some very high valuations. If they're on a par with their foreign counterparts, we'd opt for an Italian."
Referees and Serie A:
"A season lasts a long time and there are lots of matches. When you've had a decision go against you it hurts that week. But everyone makes mistakes, be they referees, players or management. I want to keep faith in sport and honesty, features of the Italian league. I don't think it's been rigged."
On the sale of Kovacic:
"I have to consider a number of factors. We signed him very young, we developed him and sold him to Real Madrid for a huge fee. There are times when it's hard to keep hold of players and it wasn't possible for a number of factors."
Overall assessment:
"I'd give Inter 6/10 at this moment in time. I'd assess our performance as par based on the fact the league table reflects teams' efforts since the start of September. We certainly can do a lot better but I can't deem it sub-par. Neither the fans, management or coach enjoy finishing behind Juventus, Napoli and Roma."
On Icardi:
"Mauro is too important for us to let go. He's already scored 50 goals at his age and he's averaging one every other game. He's the captain and we're building the team around him, bringing in players suited to Inter. We're doing all we can to try and quickly get back up towards the top of the table."
