Former Inter defender Nicolas Burdisso has admitted that he has no regrets over his decision to leave Inter for Roma in the Summer of the season that Inter would go on to win a historic treble in.
“I have never regretted the choice, even if I was very good at Inter, Moratti and Mancini have always been close to me,” he explained in an interview with Italian daily newspaper Corriere dello Sport, which appeared in yesterday’s print edition.
He then went on to speak about what it was like to play under Jose Mourinho and revealed that the Portuguese manager did not want him to leave.
“The one year with Mourinho was very formative, football was changing and he was ahead of the others. He had understood the growing importance of communication both inside the locker room and outside.
“Mourinho knew how to say the right thing at the right time. He did not want me to leave and when I faced Inter with Roma he said, ‘If it [winning the treble] happens, we will not be able to speak of a perfect year because you are missing’.”
Burdisso concluded the interview by speaking on compatriot Lionel Messi, who has been linked with a potential move to Inter after expressing his desire to leave Barcelona.
“I have the feeling that he will remain. I don’t know the real reasons for the breakup, although I can guess them. The player wants to win and he always wants to be in a position to do so.
“Leo did not share some of the most important choices of the management and, seeing how things are going, I must say that he was right. Nobody can give you the certainty of victory, especially in football but they can give you the awareness of being able to win.”
Burdisso joined Inter in 2004 from Boca Juniors and spent the next five seasons with Inter before departing for Roma. In his trophy filled spell with the club, Burdisso made 139 appearances across all competitions, in which he scored eight goals and tallied five assists.