- I was very annoyed by the publication of Milan last summer. Therefore, since then I have avoided making any statements. The scandal in our football was very difficult. Our club was treated unfairly. We have always acted openly and honestly. To the best of their ability, “Milan” tried to withstand more powerful, destructive forces in our football, but was only involuntarily drawn into their games. Let me remind you that “Milan”, playing with “Juve”, in the past few seasons has constantly suffered unfairly from the referees, as evidenced by the records in the minutes of those meetings. Therefore, in this story, our club can only be considered a victim. Nevertheless, we were severely punished.
- Is the emergency already behind?
- Yes. Disputes around the work of judges will always be, it is natural. But the climate in our football has already changed; work has become much calmer. Many young referees appeared, already well trained. The problem with “Milan” is that the summer scandal still presses on us. The club did not have the opportunity to enter the football market when everyone did it. We played the qualifying round of the Champions League without the necessary training and with players who did not go on vacation. All this ultimately led to the wrong balance of the team. In short, we were put sticks in the wheels.
- What stage of recovery are you at?
- In sports terms, everything is going well. There is no previous suspicion in the team. But after the events in Catania, the entire club is being rebuilt on the go: it is required to comply with new harsh laws, new safety requirements. It is also necessary that people become much more respectful of those who wear uniforms. In Italy, dare even insult traffic regulators.
- In the Spanish League, the Italian championship is constantly boasted and criticized. But in the quarterfinals of the Champions League there are two Italian teams, and the Spanish only one.
- Italian football is technically inferior to no other. And tactically, our teams are better equipped than others. Our coaches very little allow the opponent just like that.
- Which team is the best in Europe today?
- I think Manchester. He gives the public the most coveted performance.
- The best goalkeeper?
- Buffon. Next, Dida and Czech.
- The best defender?
“Without a doubt, Alex from PSV.”
- The best midfielder?
- Excluding the players in my team - Lampard. Good Gerrard and De Rossi.
- Forwards?
- Drogba, Eto'o and Ibrahimovic.
- And finally, the best coach ?
- Marcello Lippi.
- Name your successor in Milan.
- Mauro Tassotti.
- When?
- In 2011.
- And your future?
- I would like to train the Italian team when Donadoni completes his cycle.
- And there is no desire to try yourself in any other championship?
- The fact is that I am a very practical type. I work in the best club in the world, at the highest level. So why should I change anything?
- But last year you were one step away from moving to Real Madrid.
- Yes. But then the desire of “Milan” and its management to keep me in the upper hand prevailed. Between us is not only a professional relationship. This is also the relationship of loved ones.
- Arrigo Sacchi claims that you do not influence the club’s policy regarding the acquisition of players.
- Maybe. But, believe me, I always had an optimal dialogue with the club. Adriano Galliani is a very strong leader. After so many years of presidency in our league, he was selected to her council with a huge margin from competitors. Therefore, we know very well what can be done and what cannot.
- Your five and a half years in “Milan” - is it a lot or a lot?
- Neither one nor the other. There is no danger of addiction, as is usually considered in such cases. I really like to train “Milan”. It’s like being in a big friendly family.
- Your greatest joy this year?
- We with a heap of seemingly insoluble problems reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League. Throughout this difficult part of the season, the club was managed very wisely and sensibly.
- And how do you train Ronaldo?
- This is a football player of very high discipline and level of motivation.
“Will Ronaldinho be at your disposal?”
- He is a great player, and “Milan” Berlusconi has always been composed of only great players. Moreover, the game of such a master in any team is difficult to overestimate. He not only creates the aesthetics of team play, but he also scores a lot.
- Is Milan really at the end of the next cycle?
- Hardly. We are updating gradually, step by step. If you really want to apply the concept of the cycle, then the cycle of “Milan” will end only when Silvio Berlusconi decides to leave football. But so far, as I understand it, there is no such idea even in the hallway of his brain.
- Assuming that Berlusconi is ready to invest in the club another two hundred million, what would you advise him?
- Renew the contract with the coach ....
- How far can Milan go in the Champions League?
- We have good prospects. Over the past five years, we have been playing very stably in the League. They played in the finals in 2003 and 2005. Now here is the 2007th ... And in this draw the favorite is still not clear.
- Ahead of the game with Bayern.
- The Germans are very powerful guys. But it seems to me that they are not so good in technical terms. If they rely on physical superiority, we will simply have to contrast their corporate game with them. Of course, in the remaining time it is necessary to improve the manageability of the team if we want to go to the next round.
- What will be the finale in Athens?
- If you insist, I’ll say that in the final “Milan” and “Chelsea” will meet. After all, then we will meet our great friend Andrei Shevchenko.
- Carlo Ancelotti will forever remain ...
- ... Milanist.
- And never will be ...
“... inconsistent.”
Translation by George BYCHKOV