Ernesto Paolillo pulled no punches in his assessment of the sudden break-up between Inter Milan and Simone Inzaghi.
Speaking to TMW Radio via FCInterNews, the ex-Nerazzurri CEO blasted the 49-year-old for ‘betraying’ the club.
Though it’s been a fortnight since Simone Inzaghi departed the San Siro, his transfer to Al-Hilal remains a hot topic.
Indeed, the Saudi Pro League club’s CEO, Esteve Caldaza, sparked outrage across the Italian football community yesterday.
He admitted Al-Hilal had acquired Inzaghi’s go-ahead well before the Champions League final.
That formed the perfect backdrop for Paris Saint-Germain’s routine triumph in the Munich showpiece.
Furthermore, it was disrespectful toward Inter and their fans, especially considering Inzaghi’s pre-match silence.
His lack of transparency only deepened the sense of betrayal, raising doubts over his commitment during the club’s most critical hour.
Despite all the negatives, Inter must turn the page and focus on creating a healthy environment for the new boss, Cristian Chivu.
Ernesto Paolillo Slams Simone Inzaghi for Stabbing Inter Milan in the Back
“My opinion hasn’t changed since the first reports came out,” Paolillo was relentless. “Inzaghi betrayed the club, he betrayed Inter.
“He showed no ethical conduct because he got the timing completely wrong. He achieved a lot, but he also undid a lot.
“As a man, he really disappointed me. He took advantage of the situation to secure a massive salary, not to challenge himself as a coach.
“If that was his goal, he wouldn’t have gone to Saudi Arabia. He cashed in on the notoriety that four years at Inter gave him.”
Furthermore, he directly accused Inzaghi as an architect of Inter’s collapse in the Champions League final.
“He’s also to blame for the failures, not that there were many, but the ones that did happen,” he added.
“You don’t announce a decision like that just days before a final. A coach of his stature should know better.”
Jose Mourinho Comparison
Jose Mourinho also left Inter immediately after overseeing the Champions League final.
However, unlike Inzaghi, he left as a winner and a club legend.
“I don’t want to defend anyone because we don’t really know what happened behind the scenes,” Paolillo continued. “But clearly, there was a warning sign.
“With only one year left on his contract, we now know what happens on the market.
“The situation was underestimated – I don’t know how honest Inzaghi was with management.
“Maybe the club was caught off guard, and that’s not okay, but perhaps Inzaghi left the door open to staying.
“I don’t think he was entirely honest.
“He played his hand poorly. You don’t send a team into battle like he did.
“He could’ve used his decision to leave as motivation. It affected the final.
“And I believe he may have tried to convince some players to follow him.
“Even if the players didn’t know anything officially, they saw the news ten days before the final.
“They surely read and talked about it. True, some of them were playing their last big match due to age and shouldn’t have played that way.
“But Inzaghi had no tactical answers to PSG’s game.
“After 15 minutes, Inter’s tactical coach stood up to complain to Inzaghi, then sat back down. Something happened.”
The ‘Special One’ also refused to tell the club about Real Madrid’s approach.
However, there’s a feeling Mourinho handled the situation far better than Inzaghi.
“No, they didn’t know.
“But Mourinho used the final as a psychological weapon, pumping the players up for what he framed as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
“Mourinho had been absolutely clear with the club, but no one at the club said a word to the players.”
What a clown !!!! Inzhagi always had offers to coach abroad since the Lazio days !! Two, the 5-0 the team took in the final was a 100% the players fault for the cowardly zero heart and zero legs to stand on against a team which wanted it more. u want to blame someone blame Barella, Acherbi, Hakan, Di Marco, Thuram, Bastoni, Mikhetrian for playing a final match like if they weee 60 years old !!!! The real blame goes to the inter management who can’t seem to know how to sign young talented players and only know how to sign free over 30 past their prime players !!!! Inzhagi took a mediocre team to the champions league final twice in 3 years! Now that he has chosen to secure his family’s future financially u want to jump on him while not saying a single work on these cowards who are 5-0 in a final !? Pfffffff
journalist in the media also contributed to the failure and inter managment was also poor in handling this b4 d final. now is a big lesson. like some inter journalist would say: “inzaghi can coach other big clubs in prem league while still at inter.” such comment make laugh, bcos you are putting something in his mind
Well said Ernesto. Murinho played his cards perfectly and didn’t allow his side game get in the way of what’s in front of him. And this is why he remains Inter legend. Inzaghi on the other hand let the money get to his head and will join the likes of Icardi and Lukaku on the list of names never to be mentioned again, probably at the very top.