Cycle of success is over but never dead at Inter

It’s beyond doubt now that Wesley Sneijder is no longer the asset that he was in the ‘09/10 treble winning season at Inter. Having lost 2 out of their last three games and drawing most recently against Palermo, the dream run that the Nerazzurri has had since December has now come to a halt.

Without trying to connect dots and blame recent results on just one player, a true fan of Inter Milan knows just how important the Dutch playmaker is to the squad. When he is in form, of course.

Sneijder has spent the better part of this season on the sidelines with a muscular injury and he still seems to be in recovery. The star of Champions League final in 2010 has struggled to find form in recent weeks and his attitude has also played a factor in this. One only has to view last week’s verbal altercation with Giampaolo Pazzini away to Lecce in which Inter went down 1-0 and failed to organise themselves up front in attack.

Being a fan of Inter Milan for many years, I must admit absolute delight when finding out that he would be wearing a Pirelli top. However, two seasons on, he is clearly interested in a move to England, more specifically Manchester United. After spending most of January flirting with the Red Devils, it’s safe to assume that he’s now out of favour with Ranieri and has lost interest in his own club.

Claudio Ranieri has even stated he doesn’t know what to do with Sneijder, and to be perfectly honest, I’m not sure he really cares. The Tinkerman now has a modestly decent array of midfielders to work with – of course, not yet up to the quality of Wesley Sneijder, but let’s face it, in better form and definitely without the attitude problem.

Some may think that with Motta now plying his trade away in Paris, that Inter needs to hang on to their quality midfielders, but that isn’t the whole story. Yes, Thiago Motta has now left, and he was also one of the orchestrators of that brilliant victory at the Bernabeu in 2010, and yes, he has left a hole in the side. However, the Nerazzurri saw all of this coming and this is why their attention was focused on Fredy Guarin from Porto for so long. Even though he has struggled to start for his side for a while now, the interest in the player from Inter rivals Juventus was warranted. Guarin is a quality player who will fit right in at the San Siro. Now with the player loaned for the remainder of the season, Inter are in a good position to try him out and see exactly where and how he fits.

Let’s not also forget that Ricky Alvarez, although far from yet proving himself and making an impact, is still learning and improving. He is new to European football, but what better club to cut your Euro teeth at than Inter?

Of course, football is a funny game, it’s a funny business: Things can change very quickly and very unexpectedly. What Inter need to aim for now is their transition. They have completed their brilliant cycle of success and now it’s time to redesign and rebuild their squad. They will again be at the very summit, it just takes some smart moves and, of course, time.