Inter Milan boss Rafa Benitez’ had some really interesting comments after watching his team win the Club World Cup.
Rafa’s first comments were these when asked about the upcoming transfer window:
“I spoke with the president at the beginning of the season and we will talk again, but today is a day of celebrations. I have been polite, I did my work and I received the criticism. But now there is the need for some support and by support I mean transfers. Now I say that if Inter want Rafa Benitez as their coach he needs to have a support one hundred per cent, control over everything that is going on. That way, later, there won’t be just one culprit. We will talk of this again.”
Sounds like Rafa is more than a little upset at the criticism he has received over Inter’s poor form this season, and he is saying I want my players in and I need total control over Inter’s transfer dealings.
I can understand that Rafa wants his players in. That is understandable. It is an interesting demand for total control of Inter’s transfer policy as I don’t think that even Mounrinho had that.
If that was not enough, Rafa then conducted another interview in which he appears to give Inter an ultimatum. These are his comments:
“There are three possibilities for the club. One, 100 per cent support for the coach and buy four or five players to build a stronger team with competition among the players to be able to carry on winning matches and trophies. Two, carry on like this without a project, without planning and go ahead with one person to blame, for the whole season getting to May this way. The third is to speak to my agent and reach an agreement if there is not this support. Simple.”
Breaking that down, four of five players is a lot. That is about 20% of Inter’s roster. Considering that Inter won everything last season, are now World Champions, turning over 20% of its roster seems a little excessive.
From his time at Liverpool, it is obvious that Rafa is very thin-skinned and he cannot stand the criticism that he has faced this season. The ultimatum is obviously something that he had given some thought too before saying it. That is said it right after Inter’s victory I think shows where his loyalty lies.
To me it looks like Rafa is already laying the ground work to either get fired now or to leave over the summer. If I was in charge of Inter I would rid of Benitez now over the winter break. He was a bad hire in the first place and thee are not the kind of statement that you expect a manager to make, especially after winning a trophy.
photo credit: Keng Susumpow
