The most talked-about signing of the summer of 2008 was not a player but a coach, and Jose Mourinho lived up to his nickname as ‘The Special One’ by leading Inter to another Serie A title in commanding fashion.
Juventus and Milan put up decent challenges but they both finished 10 points behind the Nerazzurri.
Inter’s triumph was a testament to Mourinho’s man-management skills, with the Portuguese helping the talented but inconsistent Zlatan Ibrahimovic achieve a new level of efficacy.
He also made a crucial tactical tweak in moving Diego Stankovic into a No.10 role, as well as successfully harnessing the raw talent of an exciting young striker by the name of Mario Balotelli, who ended the season as the Nerazzurri’s second top-scorer in the league, with eight goals.
CHANGES
With Roberto Mancini having fallen out of favour with Inter president Massimo Moratti because of the coach’s failure to turn domestic dominance into European success, the Nerazzurri turned to Mourinho and made three big signings for their new boss: Ricardo Quaresma, Sulley Muntari and Alessandro Faiolhe Amantino (a.k.a. Mancini).
Meanwhile, city rivals Milan pulled off a major coup by signing Brazil superstar Ronaldinho, who had been deemed surplus to requirements at Barcelona, while at the same time bringing Andriy Shevchenko back to San Siro on a one-year loan from Chelsea.
Unfortunately, it quickly became apparent that both men were past their best, particularly Shevchenko, who didn’t score a single goal in 18 Serie A games.
Juventus also erred in picking up Palermo’s prolific forward Amauri, who ultimately proved a colossal waste of money at 22.8m.
Elsewhere, Roma brought in John-Arne Riise, Jeremy Menez and Julio Baptista, Lazio took Mauro Zarate on loan from Al Sadd, while Fiorentina made an inspired signing in buying Stevan Jovetic from Partizan Belgrade for €8m.
SEASON SUMMARY
Despite losing their opening two games, Milan were top by the 10th matchday, thanks in no small…
Source link : https://www.footballcritic.com/season-reviews/mourinho-maintains-intercs-scudetto-stranglehold-serie-a-in-2008-09/103
Author : editors@footballcritic.com (Martin Macdonald)
Publish date : 2024-07-29 17:00:00
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