Roberto Vecchioni interview: “The scudetto to Inter, Lautaro, Pio and..:”

Professor Vecchioni, it’s 21… “Finally, I would add. This championship has epic features, it has the flavor of rebirth, it’s a breath of fresh air. But above all it was a victory… necessary. It was an emotional necessity to be able to heal from past disappointments because those too are part of the identity of who we are”.

What exactly does this identity consist of?

“Inter is a team that, when it wins, does so in an overwhelming way, like this year. And when it loses, it becomes a tragedy, as in the last Champions League final or in other episodes of our history. Glory and sudden collapses, sometimes for a trifle, like a goalkeeper who lets a ball slip away, see Radu, or like that hand in the penalty of Inter-Lazio last year. But the fault is ours, us Inter fans, who never think we can beat destiny, nature, life. When it happens, it’s a wonderful sip of happiness. When it doesn’t happen, we have to find a culprit somewhere. In reality, the culprits are always us, identical to the team we love.

All the fans, to a certain extent, are.

“Yes, but our responses are never, ever, ever balanced, both to victories and to defeats. There is no team like this: the AC Milan fans, despite always being from the same city, are more regular. They don’t have such strong moments of anger or desperation. Inter are like an excited lover who runs ardently towards his beloved and then often… goes out at the most beautiful moment. This year, however, that hasn’t happened.”

“Of the change brought by Chivu, a man curious about life and not just about football: don’t compare him to Mourinho because he is very offensive and always wants one more goal. Certainly, he was able to speak to the hearts of the players, who are all strong, including the new signings. I think that Inzaghi was a little more tired at the end, but that in this cycle we should have won more championships because we were always superior to the others. Sometimes, however, we look at ourselves too much in the mirror, we see ourselves too beautiful. This year, however, there was a stronger conviction, just think of the latest comebacks on Como”.

The word “light” always comes back in your songs: how bright is this title compared to the others?

“I have experienced some beautiful ones, especially in the era of Helenio Herrera: 1962 is, perhaps, the favorite in the geography of the heart. But every scudetto always makes you happy and this, then, is completely deserved, also because we left nothing lying around. In Piazza Duomo, when the parade takes place, I will regularly be in my place. After all, I like to be there, in pain and in triumph: I was at the stadium in the victorious finals of the Grande Inter, in Vienna against Real Madrid and in the deluge at San Siro against Eusebio’s Benfica, unfortunately, I was also there in the play-off lost against Bologna at the Olimpico on 5 May: the 2002 one is the biggest wound of all, more than any final…”.

This is the season in which Lautaro entered the top 3 of Inter’s scorers of every era: where do you put him in the Nerazzurri pantheon?

“Meazza, let’s leave him alone, up there, like a star. Lautaro, however, can reach Altobelli: he won’t have the same scoring ability as Spillo, but he is an all-round driver and not just a man from the box. He has a melancholic trait, but the Argentines invented the tango: how can they not be melancholy? I see him as a bandolerobut never tired, still full of battles and dreams. A bit like my Velazquez who wants to change the world, write, fight, seek the truth, but also feels the human weight of this choice”.

Next to Lautaro, Thuram has a different trait.

“Different, but equally important for the successes of this era. He is more smiling, sunny, with an unpredictable and therefore indecipherable nature. While Lautaro always gives his soul, even when it’s not his day, Thuram isn’t: sometimes he’s the best of all, other times he disappears and you end up doubting him. He must always keep his feelings alive, I would sing to him ‘Dream, Marcus, dream'”.

And then there is the young Pio who blows from behind.

“I’m very happy that he’s with us, as long as we don’t compare him to Van Basten: please… He has quality and love, he fights a lot and doesn’t lose balls, but he has to improve in many things, from movements to shooting.”

Who sang the chorus of this title number 21?

“I say Calhanoglu, a cerebral player, an excellent director and also a little sentimental. It makes me think of a love song. I would say “I would like to be your mother”, which tells of a pure feeling, of knowing how to feel the needs of others. It is perfect for him who has chosen to stay here, in his home. Istanbul can wait.”

Can Barcelona also wait for Bastoni?

“In life there are some reasoned actions and others instinctive, which don’t stop. It was instinctive for him to do that celebration, that unfortunate ballet in front of Kalulu. I think he won’t forgive himself for it, but we have to see the context: he was inside the match, in a moment of great tension. It’s a foolish thing, but it can happen. And unfortunately he’s paying for it, both in the psycho-physical form and in the events that concern him, from the whistles to the red card in the national team. I think that if you don’t If he were sent off in Bosnia, we would be at the World Cup. Now it is difficult to rebuild his image in Italy, but Bastoni remains a good boy and a champion. With or without him, we need to fix the defense and buy new centre-backs.”

But in the end, with this extra tricolor and after a lifetime of support, have you understood what Inter really is?

“It’s becoming, not being. It’s waiting, I’m not arriving. For this reason, it’s the most beautiful part of life.”