Former Inter midfielder Emre Belozoglu discussed his time with the Nerazzurri, his experiences in Italy and if he still follows the Milanese club in an interview with Italian news outlet Gazzetta dello Sport earlier today.
“It’s been 15 years since I left Inter, something I miss. But come on, I’m still getting by. I have wonderful memories, when I came back to Milan, the fans have always treated me very well. They love me and I love them, you know, the Turks and Italians are similar in character.”
He moved onto talking about whether he could have won more during his time with the Nerazzurri at the start of the 21st century.
“At that time Serie A was the most famous and difficult league in the world. We had phenomenal players, as did Juventus, AC Milan and Roma. We did the best we could, even though we don’t know how things would have gone if chaos hadn’t broken out from Calciopoli.”
Belozoglu touched on his two goals against Lazio in a famous draw against the Biancocelesti in December of 2002.
“Every once in a while, I see that brace on the Internet. Well, come on, not bad. It was a year, on a personal level, that was extraordinary. And then scoring goals for certain teams is really emotional.”
The 39-year-old touched on his relationship with former Inter coach Hector Cuper.
“He gave me confidence, telling me clearly that he would never drop me and that I would be a starter that season. He was a straightforward person, positively tough, sincere, I felt great with him.”
He had similar praises for another former Inter coach, Roberto Mancini, who is now in charge of the Italian national team.
“Top coach, a winner. His secret was his age, he was very ‘close’ to us footballers, he made himself understood in an instant.”
Belozoglu told a story about former Nerazzurri president Massimo Moratti.
“On the day of the signing we gave him Turkish coffee. He was surprised, he said, ‘it’s rare for a player to give me something, it’s usually the other way around’. It was funny, we’re talking about an extraordinary man, a great one. You know what I would call him in one word? A father.”
The Turk revealed that he still follows Inter today, 15 years after leaving the club.
“Sure. And being almost 40, I do it with one eye, you know, carefully. I like Conte very much. A phenomenal coach, able to change formation and players like it was nothing, without upsetting certain principles. The team reflects his ideas perfectly.”
Finally, Belozoglu discussed the reason why Juventus are still ahead of the Nerazzurri.
“For one reason only, they have Cristiano. The best together with Messi.”
