Inter and the Troublesome Right Wing

The incoming transfer season for Inter is almost over. In my inexpert opinion, there are just a few players left to bring in. There is the excellently named Dragovic, that everyone and their mothers will tell you is on his way to Inter as soon as they free space on the roster. I have read that the space that needs freeing up is Ranocchia, but I disagree. I think that as soon as Silvestre departs – possibly Chivu as well, then we will see some movement on Dragovic… assuming that the rumors of his transfer are true.

Inter are also hot on the trail of a midfielder. Nainggolan was option one, I believe, but the Cagliari price is too high – the rumor is that they want around €18 million, which Inter are unlikely to pay. Also all the prospects that Cagliari would like in return are already out on loan – or currently staying in house. So right now that negotiation appears to be frozen unless something changes. I have read but of course can’t find just at this minute that Inter are rumored to have submitted a loan offer for Wellington of Sao Paulo. There seems to be a Tuttosport rumor that Inter are hunting for Cesc Fabergas (which really should tell one all they need to know, but I see that some people have gotten their hopes up, proving that football fandom is all about going with the heart but leaving the head in trunk) but this is plainly a ludicrous rumor. Cesc isn’t moving from Barca, and if he does, it isn’t to come to Italy. No one in Italy would even attempt to pay his transfer fee.

And this leaves us with the only position that Mazzarri will even deem to talk about in regards to the transfer market – the wingers:

The journalists tried to probe Mazzarri on potential transfers, but with little success. "I don't want to repeat myself and I understand everyone has a job to do - yours is to ask questions - but I'll only talk about transfers with the club. Piero Ausilio, Marco Branca and president Moratti know what my views are. They aren't called to answer in any great detail about what I do, about the formation we play. It's my job to talk to you about that and it's the club's job to make choices. Ask them about transfers and they'll give you the answers. If we have the chance to sign some great players then I'll be delighted, as any coach would be.

Mazzarri then replied to yet another question about the transfer market: "I'm not discussing transfers. From this afternoon's training session you'll see that we have two players for each position; in some cases we've got young lads and in other cases they're training on their own for now. That's enough for the league campaign. As I said, only out wide could we perhaps do with another body. Once I've been able to assess all the players I'll tell you if we can improve in one area or another but on paper we're well equipped as we are."

Mazzarri is happy to let whoever is actually conducting Inter’s market to do so all he has requested to date in the media is a right winger. Inter have been sniffing and staring at Isla for a while now and have essentially reached an impasse with Juventus. Neither team wants to be seen by their fans as having given in to a rival so Inter are stuck at their valuation and Juventus won’t move from theirs. The newest rumor is that Isla has agreed to take less in salary – the rumor I read was €800,000 but that didn’t seem likely – to help facilitate the deal, since he’s basically stuck in limbo until this is hammered out. I don’t know if it will help or not but Inter have made it known that Isla isn’t the only right winger in the world. In something of a departure to regular SOP, Inter have leaked that Gregory Van der Wiel is on the radar. The other option that Inter had was Gino Peruzzi, but he was transferred to Sunderland – as an aside, I don’t know where Sunderland is in England, and I am not really motivated to find out, but that sounds like one hell of a hard place to live, the Land that Sunders things, but good luck Gino... if the name is anything to go by, you’ll need it.

Anyhoo, as I was saying that wing position is going to be important as Nagatomo has suggested on his first interview back in Italy:

"Mazzarri? He's a very charismatic coach. We did a lot of work on tactics today. I think he relies greatly on his wingers; they come into play a lot during attacking moves. That's a massive incentive for me and it will help me improve. I'm very impatient, I just can't wait for the season to start.

We know, or should know, that first and foremost Mazzarri is a serious person. Mourinho might make jokes at press conferences or try to be sly and work an angle, but I am pretty convinced that Mazzarri is not that person. He wants hard work and an identity. Having said that, if Nagatomo is saying that during tactics work Mazzarri is involving the wingers heavily, I’ll believe that’s being done for a good reason. Mazzarri only really works in a few formations – 343, 3511 and 433 with wide play figuring very prominently, historically. If Inter’s transfer team is working on bringing in a player who works wide right, then they’re doing it for a reason – again, Mazzarri doesn’t seem the type to fool around. I can’t see them trying so hard to get a player that he hasn’t asked for.

In any event, unlike in years past, it seems like the vast majority of those in camp right now are going to be the backbone of the team for the rest of the season. If the above three new players come in, there are others who can hold the line adequately until the newcomers get up to speed. Wednesday of this week will be the first chance to see how the New Inter works.

FORZA INTER