Thursday 8 May, 2008

Roberto Mancini has blasted the Press for fabricating a rift between the talented Inter tactician and President Massimo Moratti.

Tensions seemed to be running high in the Beneamata camp when Mancio rubbished Moratti’s accusations that the leaders had “lacked courage” during last weekend’s derby defeat against Milan.

However, Moratti has stressed his confidence in the man on the bench and it seems that the disagreement may have been blown out of proportion.

“There is no problem between me and Moratti,” Mancini roared after last night’s Coppa Italia win against Lazio. “It has been invented by others.

“Yesterday I merely expressed a different opinion to the President regarding the performance in the derby.

“I have never said that I was against him or that I couldn’t agree with him.

“But right away everything that I said was transformed and interpreted in a controversial way.”

Mancio’s temper earned him a red card during last night’s tense game at the Stadio Olimpico and the former striker shed some light on his dismissal.

“I merely told the referee that it was a foul for us because Nicolas Burdisso had been hurt,” he claimed.

“He told me that if I repeated that I would be sent off. I repeated it and here we are.”