Wesley Sneijder on the failed Manchester United transfer, future at Inter and more

It has been a crazy summer for Wesley Sneijder.  Just when last season, which was an excruciating one for both Inter and the player, given the amount of management turmoil Inter were in coupled with Sneijder’s injury woes, ended, the transfer talks began.  Next to the Cesc Fabregas to Barcelona saga, the Wesley Sneijder to Manchester United transfer tale has been the most dramatic and the most discussed saga this summer.  The attention from the media was relentless, who were at their best in milking every possibility of the transfer, reporting repeated attempts at closing the deal, and it seemed Sneijder was destined to end up at Old Trafford as the successor to Paul Scholes.  Alas, the summer has ended and the Dutchman is still an Inter player.  Now comes the time for introspection on the failed transfer to know if there was any truth to what the media was reporting.

In a revealing interview to Italian sports daily La Gazzetta dello Sport, the Dutchman talked about how the Samuel Eto’o deal was the game changer in his transfer and how he never contemplated leaving Inter.  Samuel Eto’o to Anzhi Makhachkala has been one of the most expensive transfers this summer, arguably the most shocking one too.  Still very much in the peak of his prime, Eto’o accepting to traverse the hitherto unknown and non-glamorous path to Russia came out of the blue, but with several advantages to the club: filling Inter’s coffers with a large transfer fee, a smaller wage bracket to deal with and ability to cut down costs before the Financial Fair Play Rules came into effect.  Where they were once contemplating selling Sneijder to sort out their financial mess, with Eto’o’s sale, Inter, suddenly had the upper hand over the future of the Dutchman who always wanted to stay at the club.

“I am happy to have stayed because I have never thought of leaving.  When we won the Italian Cup I went on vacation afterwards and in my mind I only thought about going back to training camp in Pinzolo.  The club called my agent and said that they needed the money and wanted to sell.  So I talked with Manchester United, everybody knew about it.  Then came the deal for Eto’o and things just changed.”

THE UPCOMING SEASON WITH INTER

Now that the transfer talk is off, Sneijder can focus on his future with Inter, and most importantly the upcoming season. The club have decided to invest in youth this season with the arrival of Ricardo Alvarez, Luc Castaignos, Andrea Poli and Jonathan.  Diego Forlan and Mauro Zarate have arrived to fill the void of Eto’o, and Sneijder believes Inter are very much a force to be reckoned with even though the invincibility of the Mourinho era is gone.

“The team is always strong.  Winning the Champions League is difficult and we can do it in the league.  Forlan is a very good player, so is Zarate.  Alvarez is young but he is playing well.  And for the rest, we have done it before.”

Apart from the influx of youngsters and the arrival of a new manager in Gian Piero Gasperini, the other big talk this season at Inter has been the tactics employed by the new manager.  Given his faith in the 3-4-3 and its variant 3-5-2 formation, there have been doubts about how well Sneijder will fit in, given that he is best at playing in the hole behind the striker and Gasperini’s tactics will require him to operate from a deeper position.  But given the consummate professional that he is, Sneijder is up for the new challenge, ready to believe in his new manager and adapt to his tactics.

“I’ve already played as attacking midfielder, left winger and as a central midfielder.  Gasperini is a smart man.  He is very well prepared and at the end I think we will play like we have in the past.  If he doesn’t like me as a trequartista, he will arrange something.”

THE MOURINHO CONNECTION

"Jose asked me to stay put"

Last season for Sneijder was unspectacular given the exceptionally high standards he set for himself in the treble winning season under Jose Mourinho, who brought the best out of the Real Madrid reject and made him one of the world’s best.  An outspoken admirer of his former manager who made history with Inter, the Dutchman also revealed how Mourinho, who still has Inter in his heart, was a key factor in affecting his decision during the crazy summer .

“Yes, he [Mourinho] has a black and blue heart and always told me to stay.” 

“Mourinho is the number one.  Even now, after recent events in Barcelona, I will defend him by saying that in the excitement of a game, lots of things can happen.”

THE FUTURE

Some believe that Manchester United will come back to prise Wesley Sneijder away from Inter in January, but given how things stand, that looks unlikely of materialising.  The Dutchman reiterates his happiness in Milan and his commitment to Inter as he looks forward to a glorious season for his club.

“I have a contract until 2015 and I would like to respect it but it does not depend on me alone. To me, like I have said, I like everything in Milan from the life to the fans. And I also want to keep winning.”

Now that Samuel Eto’o, who is already considered a club legend despite having spent just two years at Inter is gone, the onus is on Sneijder to step up to the plate.  With Diego Forlan, Eto’o’s replacement, out of the Champions League Group stage, there has been anger and disappointment at Inter.  Sneijder, though, is not too worked up about it.  “I will score the goals myself”, he says in a self-confident note as he signs off.

Thanks to Interpersempre’s translation of the interview in the Gazzetta.  You can read the translation of the full interview here