Javier Zanetti has revealed how he swapped the training pitch for the boardroom, and why he is still studying to keep up with his role as Inter vice-president.
With quotes via CalcioMercato.com, the Nerazzurri legend was speaking on Melissa Satta’s podcast The Long Game, where he also explained the secret behind a physique that looks almost unchanged since his playing days.
“Everyone asks me the secret because I’m the same as I was 30 years ago. Honestly, I live day by day. Everything I do, I do with passion. I always train, every day if I can. When we go on holiday, I joke with my wife: ‘Listen, we can go anywhere, you choose. As long as there’s a gym.’”
Zanetti made a club-record 858 appearances for Inter between 1995 and 2014, and captained the side to the 2010 Treble. Late in his career he ruptured his Achilles tendon, an injury many expected to end his playing days, but he was back within months and retired a year later.
“I didn’t want to end my career that way. I wanted at least one more game in front of my fans at San Siro. It was while I was having a shower that, for the first time, I said to myself: this is my last season. I could have carried on, but I always told myself it’s better to stop while you’re still doing well.”
Zanetti on his Inter vice-president role
He became vice-president when he retired in 2014, and admits the transition was a steep learning curve.
“I went from training with my teammates on a pitch for 25 years to a meeting of ten managers speaking English about finance and marketing. I started studying, and I’m still studying at Bocconi University. That’s the advice I can give young people: don’t wait until the end.”
Zanetti wants his influence to reach beyond football.
“I want to be an executive who isn’t only linked to the sporting side, but who can also be useful for marketing, social causes and all the projects we have to help our club grow. Talent alone isn’t enough. Talent needs to be fed every day, you have to train it.”
He also called for clubs to pay more attention to players’ mental health, an area where Inter already have specialist staff.
“Everyone thinks players are machines: they train, they play and they always have to be at 100 per cent. But it isn’t always like that. Many things in a person’s private life can affect performance. That’s where we have to be careful and work.”
