QUOTE
It is inevitable the club with the power will be the magnet for dislike, but Susy Campanale argues Inter are bringing this universal scorn upon themselves
I recently met with some London-based Italian football fans and it turned into something of a target practice session as everyone ploughed into the lone Inter supporter. He took it with good grace and I apologised to him afterwards, for it really is not the fault of the tifosi.
The Nerazzurri will inevitably draw criticism and dislike because – like Juventus pre-Calciopoli – they are victorious, powerful and therefore dull. Yet the club is doing everything possible to make that dislike turn into vitriolic Schadenfreude-style hatred by being the world’s worst winners.
It all began with Calciopoli, when Serie A’s lovable buffoons were handed the 2006 title by default. Rather than conceding it was a meaningless token gesture, they had the gall to celebrate it and state this was the “Scudetto of honesty and justice.â€
When they finally did manage to dominate the season with all their major rivals hampered by points penalties or demotion, good grace was far too much to ask. Roberto Mancini, Massimo Moratti and several players publicly announced they hoped Milan would lose the Champions League Final to Liverpool, because otherwise that would spoil their own Scudetto party.
In the words of Steve Martin: “Well excuuuuuuuuuse meeeeeeeeee!!!†Only a club as small-minded and petty as Inter could put this sort of sibling rivalry above the interests of Italian football as a whole. Considering the make-up of their squad it wouldn’t surprise me if at the World Cup they had been cheering on Argentina rather than the Azzurri.
Six months on and the lesson has not been learned. Mancini scoffed at the Club World Cup as “nothing more than a friendly tournament†and admitted he would not be supporting Milan or Boca Juniors in the Final. Even if everyone at the club secretly hoped for a Milan defeat, the official representatives are not supposed to come out and say it!
It’s a sad day when you need to take advice on sportsmanship and fair play from Silvio Berlusconi, but that’s exactly what happened. “If Inter were challenging for an international trophy and representing Italian football, we would be cheering them on.†Not that it’s likely to happen, but still, it was a nice gesture from Berlusca.
So I apologise to that Inter fan, but no matter how many trophies, records and star players your side manages to notch up, you will have the rest of Italy willing with all their heart and soul for your absolute humiliation. Nothing personal.
I recently met with some London-based Italian football fans and it turned into something of a target practice session as everyone ploughed into the lone Inter supporter. He took it with good grace and I apologised to him afterwards, for it really is not the fault of the tifosi.
The Nerazzurri will inevitably draw criticism and dislike because – like Juventus pre-Calciopoli – they are victorious, powerful and therefore dull. Yet the club is doing everything possible to make that dislike turn into vitriolic Schadenfreude-style hatred by being the world’s worst winners.
It all began with Calciopoli, when Serie A’s lovable buffoons were handed the 2006 title by default. Rather than conceding it was a meaningless token gesture, they had the gall to celebrate it and state this was the “Scudetto of honesty and justice.â€
When they finally did manage to dominate the season with all their major rivals hampered by points penalties or demotion, good grace was far too much to ask. Roberto Mancini, Massimo Moratti and several players publicly announced they hoped Milan would lose the Champions League Final to Liverpool, because otherwise that would spoil their own Scudetto party.
In the words of Steve Martin: “Well excuuuuuuuuuse meeeeeeeeee!!!†Only a club as small-minded and petty as Inter could put this sort of sibling rivalry above the interests of Italian football as a whole. Considering the make-up of their squad it wouldn’t surprise me if at the World Cup they had been cheering on Argentina rather than the Azzurri.
Six months on and the lesson has not been learned. Mancini scoffed at the Club World Cup as “nothing more than a friendly tournament†and admitted he would not be supporting Milan or Boca Juniors in the Final. Even if everyone at the club secretly hoped for a Milan defeat, the official representatives are not supposed to come out and say it!
It’s a sad day when you need to take advice on sportsmanship and fair play from Silvio Berlusconi, but that’s exactly what happened. “If Inter were challenging for an international trophy and representing Italian football, we would be cheering them on.†Not that it’s likely to happen, but still, it was a nice gesture from Berlusca.
So I apologise to that Inter fan, but no matter how many trophies, records and star players your side manages to notch up, you will have the rest of Italy willing with all their heart and soul for your absolute humiliation. Nothing personal.
Football Italia
