Amantino Mancini: "We'll win together"
Tuesday, 15 July 2008 19:21:13
APPIANO GENTILE - Inter's new signing Amantino Mancini was unveiled to the press at the Centro Sportivo Angelo Moratti late this afternoon after signing a four-year deal with the club.
This is what the Brazilian had to say:
You are the first player to join Inter under Mourinho's reign. Your impressions of your new coach?
"My impressions were positive. I have just met the coach and he seems very nice and calm. Let's hope we can do a good job together at Inter and win some very important trophies."
You arrive from Roma and you have always seen Inter from the outside. Are the Nerazzurri really such a strong team?
"In the last few years Inter have shown they are a strong team. They have won two consecutive Scudettos so they are obviously a feared team. There are top-quality players here and there's a great coach who knows football well and who will help the team become even stronger."
Can you tell us how and when the relationship with Roma broke?
"To tell the truth, I'm not involved in these things. There's my agent who takes care of these things. I can say that I was very pleased when Inter tried to get me - it's a great club and a great team. You'll have to ask all the other questions to my agent."
When you arrived in Italy you played at full-back for Venezia. At Roma you did very well as an attacking winger and as a striker. Can you explain to us what happened?
"Everything that happened to me at Venezia was very positive. I learnt many things from playing in Serie B, which is a different championship from the Serie A. I have no regrets about Venezia, it was a very important experience for me after arriving from Brazil. (Smiles) It was just a bit cold - from 40 degrees in Brazil to minus six in northern Italy, but I was happy. The role I played in was the decision of the coach, who I always respected. I always did my duty. In life you learn to grow as a man and as an athlete."
It looks like there will be lots of play on the wings in Mourinho's Inter. You are one of the players chosen to do this job. Is this an extra responsibility?
"Yes, both for me and my team-mates. But the fact that the coach likes exploiting the wings is favourable for me because I like playing on the flanks. I can also do other things and I want to give my contribution to Inter."
At Inter you will find a number of compatriots like Adriano, Julio Cesar, Maicon and Maxwell. Is it the Brazilians who are becoming more Italian, or vice versa?
"It's a bit of both. A lot of Brazilians have moved to Italy in these last few years, and I'm pleased to find some fellow countrymen at Inter. But the Nerazzurri squad is made up of good players and many other South Americans. And it will certainly be easy to settle in because I have been in Italy for five years."
You won a Super Cup and two Tim Cups with Roma. What is your dream at Inter?
"First of all, I want to do a good job, and then I obviously hope to win something important. I would like Inter to win the Scudetto again and then we'll have the Champions League and it wouldn't be bad to win that. We will work towards our goals."
What does it feel like to be coached by a great coach like Mourinho and play with a great player like Figo?
"I'm very pleased to have the chance to work with a great coach like Mourinho. I'm very pleased to play in a team like Inter where I will have lots of responsibility. I hope I can do well. As for Figo, he's a great player who has played for great teams like Real Madrid and Barcelona. I'm very pleased to be his team-mate."
At Inter you will find Adriano...
"He is with us. He's an important player who has had problems in the past and has overcome them. He did very well in Brazil and he was San Paolo's top scorer in the championship. He's a top-quality player. He will definitely be important for our team."
Why did you seem to be in difficulty in your last few months at Roma?
"I injured my instep against Real Madrid in mid-season and I was out for about twenty days. I lost match fitness because I couldn't train in that period, but I still managed to score thirteen goals despite having a so-so season. However, I was very happy at Roma and I want to take this opportunity to thank the club, the fans and the people of Rome. I was very happy for five very important years during which I gave my contribution. Even in this transfer to Inter both clubs were very intelligent in concluding this matter with great serenity and professionalism."
Your first competitive match will be against Roma in the Super Cup...
"It will be a nice and important match. Let's hope we do well and win. We want the Super Cup in Milan."
Inter are the team you have scored most against...
"Inter brought me luck when I was at Roma. Let's hope they bring me even more luck now."
Mourinho talks of the Champions League as a competition of details. Which are the most important details in order to win it?
"All the competitions we play in are important. We will try to win them all. Winning the Champions League is obviously tops because it's an important competition. The important thing is to do our job - things will come automatically after that."
Was there a point during negotiations when you ever worried about not arriving in Milan?
"You'll have to talk with my agent about the negotiations."
At Roma last season there was often talk of Inter being helped by referees...
"I'm at Inter now and Roma is in the past. I'm just thinking about the season that is about to start."
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