Views: 24

Words from the President of Inter, Beppe Marotta, at the Hotel Principe di Savoia, during the presentation of Stefano Boldrini’s book, Il Calcio Del Futuro.

The President of the Nerazzurri spoke on various topics during the presentation of the book Il Calcio Del Futuro, written by Stefano Boldrini. The presentation took place at the Hotel Principe di Savoia.

Marotta spoke about capital gains, modern football, the Milan-Como match in Australia, and other topics. Here are his words.

Inter, Marotta’s words: from capital gains to Milan-Como in Australia

“Today, football is similar to a company: governance depends a lot on the shareholders, but the organizational part is made up of people representing the various staff. We are renovating the sports center at Appiano Gentile and I told the architect: “When we have to outline the design phase, you must imagine what football will be like in 15 years.”

In the locker room next to the referee, there is a psychologist… At Inter, there are 20 psychologists. I love the culture of developing the mental aspect because it represents a large part of the athlete’s performance, but it is challenging because those who work on the mind are seen as doctors who come to treat you, and therefore the player finds it difficult to approach.

Compared to Nordic countries, there is no approach with the psychologist, who also accompanies children with his vision, his presence, which is also an act of trust. The profiles in a football club are numerous and will always be more: a football club is no longer just a sports association but a real company.

To understand if a player is functional, modern tools are used. Certainly algorithms help you get closer to a decision, but in the end, it is the human aspect, the mind that decides whether to choose player A or player B. If I take a forward, I need to know what the shooting percentages are, how many times he sees the goal… In normal companies, there is an entrance test, a comparison with the company expert and the potential candidate, in football this does not exist, and you do not know the human aspect. Sometimes you find yourself facing players who have problems, which you can modify a bit, but you are not always successful, also due to the prejudices I mentioned earlier. Here I can highlight the difference between talents and champions: it is the mental sphere that has been lacking in those who have not become champions.

Cristiano Ronaldo is different from the others, there is nothing to be done. When we went on retreats and there was mineral water on the table, he would take it, analyze the characteristics, then consult with the doctors and ask why things were one way or another. If he still plays and is a champion, it is definitely because he himself uses intelligence to reach certain components.

I do not find it worrying that someone like Modric arrives in Italy at 40. On the contrary, I see in him a positive outlet for Italian football because our children or grandchildren, watching a player like him, as we do when we are older, fall in love and it is not just theoretical. Maybe they want to repeat his feats in training and learn a lesson. The problem is that the trend is always downhill in our football, we are a transition championship, we are no longer the El Dorado as in the 2000s. Today, the important player arrives when he is 40, the competitive and economic power leads to those profiles.

Real Madrid bought Mastantuono for 60 million euros, the Italians, if they buy a 2004, 2005, or 2006 player, spend a maximum of 30-35 million. The acquisition market is very limiting. Then there is another factor, the big clubs like Inter, Milan, Juventus, Roma, Napoli, and Atalanta have resorted to capital gains. In 2000, it was rare to see clubs selling players, today without resorting to capital gains, we would not be able to present an adequate balance sheet. The big difference is due to the fact that their TV rights abroad were sold for 10 times what we sold ours for.

The stadiums are too old, and there are few owned, you saw the difficulties with San Siro. It brings back many romantic pages for many of us, I saw the first Inter match at 9 years old in ’66 against Benfica. Those things are clearly imprinted, but one must also be somewhat modern and open to what is a concept of innovation. Building a new stadium also means innovating.

It is evident that we have achieved an important positioning, which finally allows us to build a new stadium. Of course, it must meet all the needs of modernity while respecting citizens, civic sense, ethics, and environmental sustainability. These are core principles that we absolutely must adhere to. I will not say more, we are still in an intermediary and bureaucratic phase. We will have to proceed with the acquisition of the old San Siro and the surrounding areas, after which a design phase will start, in which there must be respect for these principles.

As for Milan-Como being played in Perth, there will be a period when San Siro will not be available. The choice of Milan and Como is to have an experience that can also help understand the economic impact. If we analyze it from an ethical and social impact perspective, it is clear that an important match is taken away from the fans of Milan and Como, but it must be seen as a necessity due to force majeure, it is an experiment that will lead to evaluations that we will make afterward.”