Leonardo triumphs on return
Reuters - Thursday 06 January 2011, 22:49
MILAN - Leonardo wandered back into the San
Siro for the first time since May and although he was in the
opposite dugout it was like the Brazilian had never been away.
Inter Milan's first outing under his stewardship showed
remarkable similarities to many of the performances rivals AC
Milan managed while he was their coach last season.
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Quality goals, shaky defences and open games summed up his
campaign with the Rossoneri and the only big difference in
Inter's 3-1 win over third-placed Napoli on Thursday was the
blue stripes on the shirts instead of red.
"It's a very particular situation, but I don't want to
analyse it too much because it's a situation you can't
understand easily," Leonardo told Sky.
"I don't want to understand it, I want to live it."
Without suspended striker Samuel Eto'o and the injured pair
Julio Cesar and Wesley Sneijder, Leonardo had little room to
manoeuvre tactically compared to the side that Rafael Benitez
left after their World Club Cup triumph last month.
He chose a 4-3-1-2 against Benitez's favoured 4-3-3, with
Jose Mourinho having used both formations in last season's
treble success, but Inter looked all at sea at times as their
enthusiasm to impress the boss meant they left gaps at the back.
Top finishing from midfielders Thiago Motta, who scored
twice, and Esteban Cambiasso secured the points despite Michele
Pazienza's easy header for the visitors and a clear win over the
form team before the mid-season break cannot be underestimated.
"Today we enjoyed our play. The win was thanks to the desire
of the guys," added Leonardo, who left new signing, defender
Andrea Ranocchia, on the bench.
Inter, who paraded the five trophies they won last year
before kick off as their fans unveiled banners thanking Benitez,
are 13 points behind leaders Milan with two games in hand but
Leonardo believes a sixth straight scudetto is still possible.
"We need to think game by game, taking one step at a time,"
he said.