Paolo Stringara, a former coach of Torino and ex-player for clubs including Inter and Bologna, recently shared his views on `1 Football Club`, a radio program on 1 Station Radio. Below are highlights from his interview.
Regarding the match-up between Inter and Barcelona, Stringara sees Barcelona as a very good team, particularly highlighting Lamine Yamal`s significant impact. He stated that Yamal truly makes a difference and, without exaggeration, compares his current level to that of Maradona and Messi. Stringara noted how Yamal challenged a strong defensive team like Inter in the Champions League semifinal.
However, Stringara believes that if Yamal`s pace were to drop slightly in the return leg, Barcelona would be well within Inter`s reach, as Inter has already demonstrated they can compete without fear. He suggested that without Yamal`s exceptional performance, Barcelona is simply a good “earthly” team, implying they are beatable.
Looking at the league season, Stringara expressed a personal wish and prediction: for Inter to win the Champions League, Napoli to secure the Serie A title, and Bologna to win the Coppa Italia. He feels this outcome would be a triumph for each club and that Napoli, in particular, deserves to win a trophy this year, especially as the league was their main objective alongside the Coppa Italia.
As someone who played for both Inter and Bologna, this is a personal desire, but he also appreciates the current balance in Italian football compared to the past dominance of one or two clubs, finding it more captivating. He sees his wish as also a plausible prediction.
Addressing the rumors surrounding Antonio Conte`s future, Stringara noted that Conte has not denied any of them. He described Conte as a coach who consistently seeks guarantees from the club leadership, citing his departures from both Juventus and Inter as examples. Stringara believes Conte needs certainty about the club`s project and vision.
He suggested that if Napoli wins Serie A and President De Laurentiis satisfies Conte`s requirements – which Stringara clarified are not just financial but relate to building a competitive team capable of continued success – then Conte could potentially remain. Stringara stressed that Conte`s focus is on initiating a winning cycle, not simply seeking attention, and that the possibility of achieving this in Naples depends entirely on the club providing a convincing winning project.