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In the past two weeks we have seen a number of reports what are supposed to be crisis situations in the camps of teams like Manchester United and Inter. A team like Man. Utd is used to being at the top of the Premiership. Losing games is something that does not go down all too well and when this happens, even to a team like Man. Utd, people start to talk.
Man. Utd have won enough silverware to make any team owner or coach very happy for many years to come. A momentary blip in their level of play can be expected.
At some point, even a team with superstars, has to go through a rebuilding process. Chelsea is at the top of the game at the moment, boosted by unlimited ‘Russian’ funds. Sir Alex Ferguson is said to have remarked that it is very important for a team like Chelsea to be kept in the dark of any interest Manchester United may have in some player or other because the Londoners have enough financial power to convince any player to join their squad, even if it is for the purpose of not letting Man. Utd or Arsenal buy the player.
Ferguson should not be blamed for the poor form that the team is in even though it is time for him to move over and make way for some fresh ideas.
Then there is Inter; the team that was supposed to take the Serie A by storm this year. With great signings like Figo, Solari and Samuel joining their already star-studded team, Inter have failed to impress. Coach Roberto Mancini is under great pressure from team owner Massimo Moratti. But the problem is not the coach. It is the way the team is projecting its future. You cannot just buy the best players in the world and make them win you trophies. Chelsea has done this, but the team was first stripped down and the players hand-picked in a careful way by coach Jose Mourino, who had a endless budget.
When you see what Inter team owner Moratti has spent since taking over in 1995, it makes it more clear that the team is not being managed properly. Since taking over Moratti purchased over 110 players and spent nearly £250million in transfer fees. And the only significant trophy that Moratti has seen after this spending spree is the UEFA cup in 1998.
The team was showing signs of improvement last season when they won the Italian cup and the Super Cup. But this is not enough for Moratti. Inter have not won the scudetto since 1989.
The team needs a three to five year plan.
They have to promote young players from the youth sector. They need young players with the desire to win and the hunger for success. They must stop buying players that have already won everything with other teams and simply want to play with Inter because it is a rich team that pays well.
Moratti should look at Man. Utd as an example of how players are promoted from the youth sector. Or he should look at the careful signings of Juve or Milan.
Inter is not in crisis, but the crisis is in the club's boardroom.
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