Football
Ben Gladwell, Italy correspondent 9y

Inter Milan president gives under-fire Walter Mazzarri vote of confidence

Inter Milan president Erick Thohir has given coach Walter Mazzarri a vote of confidence after back-to-back Serie A defeats.

The Nerazzurri have shipped seven goals without scoring in their last two matches, slipping to 10th in the standings, 10 points off top spot.

Mazzarri has borne the brunt of the fans' frustrations, but Thohir is standing by him, convinced he will turn things around.

#INSERT type:image caption:Mazzarri has come under pressure from Inter supporters are heavy back-to-back Serie A defeats. END#

"The defeats to Cagliari and Fiorentina may have shaken us a bit, but I am sure that everybody has a strong desire to improve things," Thohir said on the club's website.

"The Italian league is extremely competitive and for this reason, you need a bit of patience.

"We need to analyse well the period the team is going through and hopefully the [international] break will help us to evaluate the situation well.

"Mazzarri will do his best for Inter and we will give him the opportunity to do so. The coach continues to enjoy our entire faith and now the players must do some self-examination to prepare for the next game as well as possible."

Mazzarri still seems to be working on borrowed time, though, with Thohir expecting no less than last season's fifth-placed finish, and ideally a place in the top three.

#INSERT type:image caption:Inter were defeated 4-0 at home by lowly Cagliari before losing 3-0 to Fiorentina at the weekend. END#

Inter's next game comes against fellow top-three contenders Napoli and a third straight defeat would put Thohir's faith in Mazzarri to the test, with former coach Andrea Stramaccioni admitting he would jump at the chance of coaching Inter again.

"Inter are one of the most loved clubs in Italy and I don't deny I left a piece of my heart in Milan," said Stramaccioni, who is currently in charge of fourth-place Udinese.

"I got to know everybody there, from the kitman to the president, and I'm sorry to see the state they are in.

"It's a club where everything gets exaggerated, positively and negatively, because Inter are a club who have got to win. It's not for me to judge, though. I just hope they resolve things soon."

#INSERT type:image caption:Stramaccioni lasted only one season at Inter as they failed to qualify for Europe for the first time in 15 seasons. END#

The 38-year-old, who famously led the Nerazzurri to victory over arch-rivals Juventus at the Juventus Stadium two years ago, added on RAI radio that he is happy where he is.

"It's only normal that I'd like to return to a big club, but Udinese are also a big club," he said.

"I'm delighted to be in Udine. I think Udine is a great place to be for a young coach like myself and I'm proud that the Pozzo family chose me."

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