Inter Milan Season Preview: Against all odds

Head coach Walter Mazzarri of FC Inter Milan looks on during the Serie A match against Genoa CFC at the San Siro Stadium on August 25, 2013 in Milan, Italy. Mazzarri got his Inter career off to a good start as his side ran out 2-0 winners. (Getty Images)

It’s been a tough couple of years on the blue side of Milan, but the great thing about a new season is that everybody starts level. With a dismal ninth place in the last campaign now behind them, the supporters of the Nerazzuri are looking forward, to what is essentially, a transitional year. It’s the start of a new era at Inter and the Curva Nord of the San Siro is hoping for a revival of fortunes.

It’s hard to believe this is the same Inter that won the treble in 2010 or the same Inter that won five Scudetti’s on the trot. The nosedive began with Rafael Benitez’s ill-fated spell and ended quite dramatically with seven losses in the last ten games of the 2012-13 Serie A season. Massimo Moratti has tried his level best to attract top players to the club but without the prospect of European football, he has made very limited progress.

The arrival of former Napoli manager, Walter Mazzarri has provided a significant and much needed lift to the aspirations of the Inter faithful. The manager is already working on solidifying the leaky defence that fans have been so very vocal about and developing the young talent that the club possesses.

The squad is facing a period of severe change and as such has been cutting ties with some old faces; chief among them is the mighty Serb Dejan Stankovic, who left the club after nine years of diligent service.

The club also parted ways with Walter Gargano and Matias Silvestre. Antonio Cassano too left the club; barely a season after the mercurial Italian international joined them as a part of the deal, which sent Giampaolo Pazzini to AC Milan (no prizes for guessing which club got the better end of that agreement).

The Italian giants, however, managed to secure the services of a few of the most prodigious young players that the Serie A has to offer. U-20 Argentina international Mauro Icardi signed for a deal worth £5.2m from Sampdoria. 21-year-old Algerian international Ishak Belfodil came in from Parma. The two youngsters scored 11 and eight goals respectively in the league last year and are expected to continue their development alongside Serie A stalwarts, Rodrigo Palacio and Diego Milito.

The manager has also bought in an established and battle-hardened veteran of the Italian game in Hugo Campagnaro, formerly of Napoli to join new signing Rolando in defence. The Argentine international declined a new contract at Napoli to join Mazzarri and form the same old partnership in a new environment. The latest young talent to join Inter’s squad is central midfielder Saphir Taider, who has joined the Nerazzuri for a reported £4.8m from Bologna.

The new signings do seem like a step in the right direction for Inter, a team that has suddenly dropped off the list of contenders for the Scudetto. The club is still active in the transfer market and may very well sign another couple of players before the window slams shut on the September 2. The Nerazzuri are looking to bring in Juan Iturbe from Porto and are also pursuing a deal to bring back Samuel Eto’o to the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza.

The mercato might have added a few fresh faces to the squad but the main source of excitement among Inter fans are the performances of 19-year-old Croatian international Mateo Kovacic. The young regista (playmaker) is widely expected to have a breakout season with Inter this year and could be one of the key factors in the squad if they are to qualify for Europe. The burden of the weight on this young man’s shoulders might have bought others to their knees but this young starlet appears to be level-headed and is backed to succeed by experts.

Javier Zanetti has gone so far as to say that the young midfielder’s talent is the best Inter have had since the departure of Ronaldo. Mazzari has favoured a 3-5-2 system in the past and that seems to be the best choice for this Inter team. It will be particularly interesting to see how Kovacic can connect the three man defence to the front men and how Mazzari will accommodate the overflowing wealth of attacking talent at his disposal.

F.C. Internazionale Milano are at a crossroads at this moment in time and face a moment of reckoning, which might decide their fate for decades to come. Every single one of their Serie A rivals have improved significantly during the transfer window and Inter have responded, but only time will tell how far they have come since the horror show that was the last campaign.

Inter do hold a major advantage over some of their rivals since they will not be playing in Europe this term, which might afford them a more relaxed schedule. Beyond that, the onus is on Mazzarri and his merry men.

Predicted Finish: 5th