Inter President Beppe Marotta warns they cannot ‘bridge the distance with the Premier League by spending crazy amounts of money’ after losing out on Marco Palestra to Chelsea.
The Nerazzurri are currently in Australia for their pre-season tour and as part of those media duties the chief sat down with Globo TV.
It has been a frankly frustrating summer for the Champions of Italy, who were forced to miss out on several top transfer targets, including Palestra to Chelsea, then Anan Khalaili failed a medical when ready to join from Union Saint-Gilloise.
Inter cannot compete with Premier League cash
“In the 1980s and 90s, Serie A represented the reference point for football all over the world,” noted Marotta.
“Today the balance has shifted and the economic gap is evident. We cannot think of bridging that distance by spending crazy amounts of money.
“Our response must be different: creativity, competence and motivation. The idea that whoever spends the most money automatically wins is the opposite of sport.
“You have to build a team with values, making the most of management, coaches, staff and players.”
Marotta has covered many roles in his career, as he was promoted from general manager of Inter to President when Oaktree took over from Suning.
“A great manager taught me that the President has two fundamental rights: to choose the people he works with and set the values that he wants to build the club around.
“These are the principles that guide my every decision. We are perfectly in sync with the new owners and were able to launch important projects, like the new stadium, which represents a decisive passage to making Inter increasingly modern.”
Inter won the Serie A title and the Coppa Italia last season, but struggled in the Champions League, so what are their ambitions for this term?
“The expectations are the same as always, Inter participate in every competition with the aim of achieving the maximum result,” added Marotta.
“This club won many trophies over its history and that describes more than any words can what our identity is. We are a club accustomed to winning, but behind every victory there is passion, struggle, a work ethic and sense of belonging.”
