Marotta: ‘Chivu must remain with Inter for many years’
Beppe Marotta won the 10th Scudetto of his career, but the first as Inter President, and insists Cristian Chivu ‘must remain for many years.’
You can follow the Scudetto celebrations on the special Inter Liveblog.
Although he had won the Serie A title nine times before at Juventus and Inter, this was his first as President.
“It is certainly different and a dream come true,” Marotta told DAZN Italia.
“I honestly never dreamed of winning as President of Inter, it is something remarkable. I thank the Presidents who preceded me, and who inspired me, like Pellegrini, Moratti, Zhang. I also thank the fans and the owners, who have allowed us to work in a calm atmosphere.
“However, this Scudetto belongs to Chivu and the team.”
Marotta oversaw Inter turnaround
The Nerazzurri had needed a complete reboot after ending last season empty-handed, losing the Champions League Final, the Scudetto by one point, the Supercoppa Italiana Final and the Coppa Italia semi-final.
Simone Inzaghi walked away too, but Cristian Chivu was drafted in as a surprise choice just days before the Club World Cup kicked off with very little senior management experience.
He has taken them to the Serie A title and they still have to play the Coppa Italia Final against Lazio on May 13.
“As Inzaghi also confirmed the contract termination by mutual consent was on Monday and on the Tuesday we decided to go for Chivu,” assured Marotta.
“It was a courageous choice, but a considered one too, because Chivu already had the curriculum as a player winning the Treble here, of being the Ajax captain at age 21, of winning with the Inter youth team as coach, and also of taking Parma to safety.
“We had no doubts on his skills, so perhaps he was lacking a little in experience, but we supported him to cover this gap in his CV. He can and must remain at Inter for many years, as he has great qualities.”
There were some moments during this season when they hit obstacles, repeatedly falling down in the big games and eliminated from the Champions League by Bodo/Glimt in the play-offs.
“After a slightly negative period where the performances were still strong, we realised the team was united and the coach was their leader,” explained Marotta.
“I never fired a coach during a season because the coach is a fundamental component who must be helped. Too often, people make instinctive decisions and the coach pays the price for others, but that is not the way we do things.
“We have a different culture, and besides, there was no reason to make a change. We knew his value and that of the team.”
Now Inter are preparing for next season, so has Chivu asked for any specific new signings?
“We speak very often, and this is not the right time to talk about it now, but we do have some clear ideas,” replied the President.
“The owners will set the financial guardrails, but I am confident because we have a solid core of Italian players in this squad. We also want to look around for the best Italian talents on the market.”
Might he be referring to Atalanta-owned Marco Palestra, currently on loan at Cagliari?
“He has a great future ahead of him, but he is not our player.”
Someone whose future is up in the air is Alessandro Bastoni, who has been heavily linked with Barcelona and Liverpool.
“We need the right mix of youth and experience, those players who bring the winning culture and motivation.”
