SILVESTRE RAISES THE INTER WALL
“Finally I get to meet Samuel and being Lucio’s replacement does not scare me.”
“Milan were interested? Thank you but I wanted the Nerazzurri.”
“I already have many friends here and it is such pride of being able to contribute to the new cycle after the treble.”
Milan – The wall is getting taller: in fact, doubled. Student Matias Silvestre has finally met his master Walter Samuel, one that he never had a chance to meet, let alone play togheter at Boca Juniors. The newest Argentinian defender of Inter recalls back to 2000 in his Boca Juniors days and his memories are still sharp: “I was 16 years old and had just been called up to the first team so I never played with him but it has always been my desire. So now I can fulfill a dream as a teenager, to form a defensive pair with Walter Samuel.”
He is not the only Argentinian at Inter.
“Well yes. With Rodrigo Palacio, we played together at Boca and he is a dear friend. In recent weeks I have had so many text messages begging me not to go to Milan. But yeah, all the Argentinians here will be my point of reference.”
Starting with the captain.
“Certainly. Zanetti has always been an example for me since I was at Boca. And now I get to play with him here. I will listen to his advice, a fortune that I could not imagine until now.”
Milan would have had focused in on you if they sold Thiago Silva? What would you say to that?
“I cannot be more honored with such comparison. However, I must be honest, I had another club in mind. In these two months I left my agent Pablo Cosentino to do his job although I always rooted for the Nerazzurri to be the final solution. I always thought of the idea of wearing this shirt. The recent years as well as the treble have enthused me a lot and now I will do my part with pride to start a new cycle.”
You are going to take place of an important player in Lucio.
“It is not going to be easy. Lucio’s career speaks for itself. Even I also like to dribble the ball with my feet from my penalty area but rest assured: I won’t go overboard. I know that I have to work hard to deserve a place in this team and my main goal is just that.”
You were not born as a defender.
“In fact, as a kid, I was a midfielder and my idol as Redondo. The Basile placed me in the back and now I thank him. As a central defender I have the right experience to tackle the tests at Inter.”
Andrea Ranocchia will want the starting spot.
“He has great qualities. But I will play my cards knowing that at this level, there are no starters or reserves.”
At Boca Juniors, you won a lot.
“It was an incredible experience. Carlos Bianchi believed in me and that glorious club has had so many quality players. All the experience that I learned from that will now come in handy. This new Inter also gives me a lot of confidence. With the enthusiasm of the new and the experience of the historic nucleus that Inter have, we can start opening a beautiful era together.”
You are a defender with many goals: what’s the secret?
“Yes, I have many goals in my career but the important thing is to defend well and then you can attack. Of course I will go forward in free kick situations.”
How do you practice with these headers?
“Actually I learned a lot as a kid at Club Parque, where many champions like Cambiasso and Tevez were there. There was a special machine, a bar with a ball tied to it. This machine will always keep on moving and we have to hit it. That has helped me a lot in terms of timing. The best secret for playing in the air.”
Just like Samuel.
“He is also a specialist in this sense, from him I can always learn more even if we have different characteristics.”
What do you have to say about Milito?
“All the good things. I faced him many times and it has always been a pain. With him up front, goals are a sure thing.”
Can you explain what your origins are because thanks to which, you have an Italian passport.
“My mom’s family is originally from Castano Primo, in the province of Milan and not far away from Appiano Gentile. I am going to go there soon and I am curious to find out if there are still my close relatives. For example, the mayor is Franco Rudoni and has the same last name as my mother. It was fate that I came here.”
You just got married.
“It is a very beautiful moment in my life. Two weeks ago, there was a weeding with Lucia after ten years of being together and we just returned from our honeymoon in Dubai. We knew each other from school and we are going to find a house here in Milan. I do not know yet whether it is in or outside the city center. We will see where, after training camp we’ll choose.”
Prandelli thought about giving you a call for the Euro.
“I read that in the newspaper and I couldn’t be more happy. But my first goal now is to conquer a place at Inter but if this helps me convince Prandelli…”
But you also heard from the Argentinian national team no?
“To say the truth, in the past few weeks, I called Sabella, the Argentinian coach, just to tell him my intention. Perhaps even he heard about the interest coming from Italy. But it is too early to address this issue. I am only thinking about Inter. This is the opportunity of my life and I want to take advantage of it.”
The experiences at Catania and Palermo were important.
“Without a doubt. I learned about the difficulties of the Italian League and I did well in both cities. I also would like to take this opportunity and thank them especially president Zamparini who realized that this opportunity was very important for me.”
Source: Gazzetta dello Sport
