Inter Per Sempre

"We were in total control against a team who played their game.  Pandev was spectacular today."

MILAN - Inter's victory over Cagliari was their ninth home win in a row and José Mourinho says the recent run of successes has done wonders for team morale. "It was an important victory after a January which has given this Inter lots of confidence. We have won many games in a row, also in the Coppa Italia," he said. "The team has lots of confidence. You could see it today from the way we went on the pitch, and as a coach I felt this feeling too. Cagliari aren't an easy opponent and they created difficulties even when they were two- or three-nil down, but my team was compact and confident throughout. These three points today are very important considering Milan's draw at Bologna.

"Our opponent played their game and did well, but we had total control. Cagliari are very strong in attack, but we did well. Pandev played a spectacular game. Behind him there was a very well organised structure and in front of him there were Eto'o and Milito who are two very difficult players for opponents. It was an indisputable victory and Cagliari's heaviest defeat, and this is significant."

With Sneidjder out suspended, Pandev was deployed in a slightly deeper role than usual, a position usually filled by the Dutchman. "Sneijder is an attacking midfielder while Pandev is a striker who can also be a bit defensive," said Mourinho. "Today we knew that Conti is a good organiser of play and someone we couldn't leave free, so I asked Goran to play offensively but also to get back a bit defensively. And Eto'o and Milito did the same."



Inter are scoring a lot and the goals are coming from all over. Mourinho explained the secret: "This is our game. We attack down the wings when we have the chance, and we also play more centrally with players who can do it. This creates difficulties for our opponents because we can change the way we obtain depth each time and it's not easy for them to close down our movements."

With four strikers to choose from, Mourinho was asked how he will rotate Eto'o, Pandev, Milito, Balotelli in the coming months. "It depends on the opponent, on the match and on the available players, but having the possibility of choosing between them is only a beautiful problem," he replied. "We have many matches ahead of us. Today, for example, Pandev was a bit stronger than Milito and this is because Diego played ninety minutes against Fiorentina in the Coppa Italia last Wednesday. Also, I can play with three strikers because I have players who 'frighten' opponents. If I were an opponent, I would be really frightened of the Nerazzurri attack."