Interview with Roberto Mancini: "Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are at the same level"
Roberto Mancini belongs to the group of the greatest Italian coaches of the modern era alongside the likes of Carlo Ancelotti, Antonio Conte, Massimilano Allegri and Claudio Ranieri amongst others.
He has won titles with all the teams he has managed and is mostly known for his work with Inter Milan and Manchester City, leading them to triumphs in the Serie A and the Premier League, respectively.
Currently, a free agent and Mancini says to Sportskeeda in an exclusive interview that he would be interested and open to offers from India as well as China. Meanwhile, management jobs in Spain, Germany and France also remain on his wish list for the future.
As a manager, you have worked in Italy, England and Turkey. What are your plans for the future? Are Spain, Germany and France – countries which are considered to have top football championships also on your wishlist?
They are all big leagues. The experience in the Premier League with Manchester City has made me passionate about foreign football and sooner or later, if I get the opportunity, I would also like to work in these championships.
Your name was being reportedly doing the circles for the job of the England national team. Was there any truth in that? Did you have discussions with the FA?
It's normal that my name will be linked with different clubs or national teams that have no manager. But I have never been contacted by the English National Team.
Indian Super League is a quite new project which collects marquee players and expert coaches. Would you be interested in coaching an Indian club?
One day, you never know. I'm still fascinated by countries like India and China that are growing much, from the point of view of knowledge of football; little were known about them in the sport until a few years ago.
This year as always, a number of clubs are vying for the Premier League title. Which team do you think is the most capable of winning it in 2017 title and why?
I wish my Italian colleague, Antonio Conte, would repeat what I did with Manchester City and what Claudio Ranieri did last year with Leicester.
Inter is the club where you have worked more years than any other in your managerial career. You won a lot of titles with them, but in the last five years, they have stopped winning trophies (the last was 2011 Copa Italia). What is wrong in Inter in your opinion?
There's nothing wrong. Last season, if we had been able to convert some defeats into draws, we probably would have surpassed Roma and made it to the Champions League. Then we would be talking of a different Inter. My return to Inter was still a positive experience.
How will rank the Italian teams right now? If you were told to tell the top 10 teams. Who would they be?
Juventus, Napoli, Roma, Inter, Lazio, Milan, Fiorentina, Torino, Atalanta, Genoa.
What is your opinion of 2017 Champions League and 2017 Europa League winners? Which are the teams that have the potential of winning the titles?
I believe that Juventus have what it takes to win it (Champions League). I think that Roma are the favourites for the Europa League. In short, I support the Italians!
Messi and Ronaldo are considered as the two best players in modern football. Which is the best in your opinion and why?
They are at the same level, albeit with different characteristics. With players like them, you can win it all; they score a goal per game.
As a player, you had played for Leicester City in 2001 on loan from Lazio. Leicester won the Premier League miraculously last year with a compatriot of yours, Italian Claudio Ranieri, as their manager. Was it accidental or a set of circumstances that were in favour of Leicester that defined their success?
Firstly, they have a great coach like Ranieri, whom I respect a lot. Football is a combination of events. Everything has to happen the right way to get to win a championship. It is so beautiful and charming as well as difficult to win the Premier League. And last year all things clicked for Leicester.
A great player of English football, Steven Gerrard, retired. You had faced him as an opponent many times. Would you include him among the most difficult to beat players individually and in club level?
Certainly, he was a great champion and among the best midfielders English football. And not only, he one of the midfielders that I feel England has ever had.
Antonio Conte is doing a great job in Chelsea this year. A lot of Italian coaches have succeeded in England: you, Conte, Ranieri, Di Matteo. Do you think the Premier League is the most suitable championship for Italian managers after Serie A?
I would also add that Carlo Ancelotti has won in England and France as well. And I feel it has nothing to do with the country, I would rather say that the Italians coaches are successful abroad because they are the best.