Article 30 — Inter 92–97
This article marks the first of my series looking back at my time as an Inter fan. This series would also mark the last of my throwback series. I have been following Serie A after Italia 90 when I newly acquired awareness of football. I never committed to being a supporter of any Serie A club until 1992 when I chose Inter. You may refer to Article 1 to find out how I became an Inter fan.
In the early days of my Serie A following, I was admiring an AC Milan team that created a big impression in my mind of being a powerful team that rarely lost and they were when you look at what they won at that time between the early to mid-90s. Marco Van Basten, AC Milan’s striker also created an impression of a powerful, goal gobbling monster in my mind. I kept hearing his name as a goalscorer in Milan’s victories. I was also mesmerised by the brilliance of Roberto Baggio, my all-time favourite player, with his brilliance he was dragging his team, Juventus along.
In the early 90s, I was resigned to watching Serie A highlights for my weekly updates on what was going on in Serie A and in those highlights, you don’t get the full picture of how the team or non-attacking players played. In my first season as a fan in 1992–93, it was only now that I realised we actually ended the season runners-up to AC Milan. Milan had wrapped up the title early and took their foot off the pedal which enabled Inter to close the gap to 4 points. We were not involved in any European competition this season and finished quarter-finalists in the Coppa Italia, losing to our neighbours, AC Milan.
The reason I became an Inter fan, Schillaci didn’t score too many but I gained the attention of a short, stocky Uruguayan striker, Ruben Sosa who was our top scorer. Other players I remember now from that squad were Luigi De Agostini, Alessandro Bianchi, Nicola Berti, Davide Fontolan, Antonio Manicone and Igor Shalimov.
For the 1993–94 season, we signed Dutch pair, Dennis Bergkamp and Wim Jonk. I got to know both from playing for the Dutch national team at Euro 92. Bergkamp was a big-name signing for us.
Inter had a terrible season in Serie A and again our Coppa Italia involvement ended at the quarter-final stage this time by Sampdoria but somehow won the UEFA Cup. The UEFA Cup finals were played over 2 legs at that time and Inter won both legs of the final over Austrian side, Casino Salzburg with a typical Italian score, 1–0 in both legs. The UEFA Cup 1993–94 was the first trophy triumph I experienced as an Inter fan.
Sosa was still our main striker despite Bergkamp’s arrival. Bergkamp struggled in Serie A but did well in the UEFA Cup and ended the season as the overall top scorer that season with 18 goals. Schillaci only scored 5 goals as he continued struggling. Gianluca Festa and Massimo Paganin were two players I got to know this season who had joined over the summer.
On the back of my increased football knowledge from USA 94, I was pleased that Inter had Italian goalkeeper, Gianluca Pagliuca in their ranks from 1994–95 onwards.
It was belated but I just noticed Inter’s captain Giuseppe Bergomi this season. Igor Shalimov and Salvatore Schillaci left the club this season. Schillaci concluded a disappointing time at the club to join the Japanese team, Jubilo Iwata. It’s also a pity that in my initial seasons, I didn’t get to remember Walter Zenga too well and he was sold as well in this summer. There was also a young striker in this squad by the name of Marco Delvecchio that I found out about but would become better-known later in his career at Roma.
Inter ended this season 6th in Serie A and couldn’t defend the UEFA Cup we won, getting knocked out in the 1st Round by English team, Aston Villa. We got as far as the quarter-finals in the Coppa Italia, knocked out Foggia. What was significant this season was the takeover of the club by the son of former President Angelo Moratti, Massimo Moratti. Angelo Moratti was at the helm in Inter’s glorious era of the 60s the team known as La Grande Inter. I didn’t know much about Moratti until later in the 90s. He would have a big impact on the image and profile of Inter after this season.
In Massimo Moratti’s first full season as the club owner, he signed a player I was very familiar with from his time at my favourite English club, Manchester United, Paul Ince.
He had also signed at the time, little-known Argentine Javier Zanetti and Brazilian, Roberto Carlos.
Other players that joined were Maurizio Ganz, Marco Branca, Benito Carbone, Alessandro Pistone and Salvatore Fresi. The Dutch duo of Dennis Bergkamp and Wim Jonk left at the same time, capping a disappointing time for the former while the latter had a much better time at San Siro than his compatriot. Our star striker, Ruben Sosa too left.
We didn’t have a great season in the league again, finishing 7th. We went a step closer in the Coppa Italia this season, going to the semi-final before being knocked out by Fiorentina but were surprisingly knocked out in the 1st Round of the UEFA Cup by Swiss side Lugano. We went through 3 managers this season with the most significant one and the last of the 3 managers that season being the appointment of an Englishman who led Switzerland to USA 94 and Euro 96, Roy Hodgson.
I was impressed by our strikers Ganz and Branca who scored 30 goals between themselves. Carbone impressed me with his long-range shooting, creativity and nippiness, Zanetti with his strong and speedy runs with the ball and without and Roberto Carlos with his explosive, powerful shots and speed.
Massimo Moratti’s Inter was starting to take shape now in 1996–97. Youri Djorkaeff and Ivan Zamorano were two big-name signings that Moratti made this season from Paris-Saint Germain and Real Madrid respectively.
We also signed Aaron Winter who we already knew from his time at Lazio, Jocelyn Angloma joined as well but I knew him from the French team at Euro 96 rather than at Torino, Ciriaco Sforza who I knew from the Swiss team of USA 94 and Euro 96 and the tall and lanky, highly-rated young Nigerian, Nwankwo Kanu from the Ajax Amsterdam team that won the Champions League final against AC Milan in 1994–95 and lost it against Juventus a season after in 1995–96.
I was surprised and disappointed that we let Roberto Carlos leave for Real Madrid. I thought he was one of our better players last season. Years later it turned out that he was sold because he didn’t want to play under Roy Hodgson which was a pity because he could have gone on to have some great years with us. Fontolan, Bianchi and Manicone were sold too. It was also a surprise that Benito Carbone was sold to English club Sheffield Wednesday and Gianluca Festa followed him to England at Middlesbrough. We finished in 3rd place this season in Serie A which was higher than any of the last 3 seasons, we reached the semi-finals of the Coppa Italia again, losing to Napoli and reaching the final of the UEFA Cup against German side, Schalke 04.
In the final of the UEFA Cup which I remember watching the second leg of played at San Siro. Schalke had beaten us 1–0 in Germany in the first leg. In the second leg, we huffed and puffed and needed a late goal by Zamorano to bring the game to extra-time. We couldn’t break them down and get past the stubborn Schalke team eventually losing on penalties 1–4. It was a tough defeat to stomach because we could and should have beaten Schalke over 120 minutes.
The defeat to Schalke didn’t go down well with Inter fans as we were expected to beat the unfancied German team and win the UEFA Cup. Roy Hodgson bore the brunt of the anger from the Inter fans and he left the day after at the end of his contract.
Things were to now become grander and more fun but not necessarily successful. I end this article with a spectacular goal by Youri Djorkaeff against Roma at San Siro in the 1996–97 season.
