Moratti: Inter must beat Marseille

Posted Tuesday, March 13, 2012 by ESPN

Inter Milan president Massimo Moratti wants his team to progress to the quarter-finals through "any means necessary" on Tuesday.

The Nerazzuri had failed to register a victory since January before their weekend encounter with Chievo. Luckily, the game ended with a 2-0 win victory relieving some pressure on head coach Claudio Ranieri.

Nevertheless, Moratti does not wish his team to lose their focus ahead of the crucial game against Marseille. Inter will be hosting Marseille hoping to overturn a one-goal deficit from the first leg.

The Italian side have a poor home record in the Champions League having only picked up three points there this season. They face a Marseille side intent on sealing their passage to the next stage and a Champions League exit would further add to the club's recent woes.

Inter are currently in seventh place in the Serie A and six points behind Udinese who occupy the last Europa League spot. The club could face the real possibility of missing out on Europe in the coming season.

"It was good to win [against Chievo], even if the success came at the end, but had we scored that early penalty then we would've been less anxious," Moratti told Sky Sport Italia on Saturday.

"In any case, they played a good first half and had a certain confidence in the second, so this bodes well for the game with Marseille."

"The important thing is that at the end of the day we win, by any means necessary and in any style. I expect the players are really feeling the lead-up to this game, but in a positive way and not excessively emotional."

The oil baron reiterated his support for beleaguered manager Claudio Ranieri and criticised the media reports focusing on the coach's tentative hold over the post.

"It's not easy for a coach to read in the papers every day that there's a new coach coming in to replace him.

"Ranieri is professional, he's getting on with his job and he has my complete support in this difficult time that he's experiencing and that we're trying to get through."

He also believes that the Italian media has an agenda against his club which won a treble in 2010.

"I don't know why there is so much criticism, but in the history of Italian football, which we all know, Inter were never the most loved club.

"We were never the media darlings, so it's possible a downturn in form draws more criticism than others, but it won't cause a problem for us.

"Do I get angry about this? No, you get angry when you read it, but then it immediately washes over you."

Moratti also hinted that he may not stay at the club for much longer as several insulting banners from Inter fans in the recent matches have frustrated the 56-year-old.

"Well, more than anything else we must understand whether others want me to stay... because that is another matter."