"Inter is a mother to me"

“Inter is a young player's mother: I remember my first years very clearly. I wasn't a regular starter, but I would be called up to train with the senior players. I watched them, trying to understand how they played the ball: it was a wonderful experience that taught me so much. The first European Cup is the trophy I feel most attached to: we had finally managed to win it. We had fought so hard to get our hands on it; every time we stepped onto the pitch, we did so with bated breath, as if to say: "Come on, lads, we're nearly there!" We knew we had to give everything. Real Madrid were a great team, but by helping one another, we got the victory, which at that moment was the most important thing. Puskás, for me, was one of the great players in the history of football. When he came towards me, I was trembling. When he told me what he told me, I would have wanted to lie down on the floor and just listen to him. I've never wanted to say what he said to me, because from that moment on, I was never the same player again. Even now, when I talk about it, I can see Puskás in front of my eyes. It was something extraordinary. Winning the First Star was a fascinating moment. We were already tense in the dressing room: we couldn't afford to miss an opportunity like that, but once we were on the pitch, everything became clear. We looked each other in the eye and understood what we had to do. In 1971, we didn't think we would be able to win. When you manage to come back because of what is inside your team, inside yourself, it is something extraordinary — something you remember forever. Before one match, we were a little worried. When I came into the dressing room after the warm-up, I looked at my teammates, but I didn't recognise them. They were lost, afraid that they weren't up to the situation. I remember that our goalkeeper at the time noticed that I was trembling and that my face was red, and he said to me: "Do you want to tell the lads what we need to do, or do we already know how to win the match?" That unlocked everything. We started talking among ourselves and went out there ready to play the match. The fans are something extraordinary. We grew up with Inter; we had a fan's heart. I would go home and walk past a bar full of supporters. As soon as I came out of my front door, they would all be there, ready to let me know that they were behind me and that Inter belonged to them.”