Radja Nainggolan: “Inter Were Clear About My Future & I Appreciate That” | OneFootball

Radja Nainggolan thanked Inter today for being clear with him about their desire to sell the midfielder this summer.

Cagliari resigned Nainggolan on a season-long loan after Antonio Conte and Inter’s hierarchy decided he was surplus to requirements in Milan.

In an interview with Corriere dello Sport, the Ninja explained how he was told he needed to leave and admitted he too was to blame for his departure.

Nainggolan said: “I always appreciate people who talk directly to your face. They came up to me at the start of the summer and said: ‘You’re not part of our plans’.

“Beppe Marotta never spoke to me, it was Gabriele Oriali and then Conte. He told me he had always admired me as a player, but that this was a decision taken for off-pitch reasons.

“Perhaps I’m partially to blame. My outlook on life isn’t a typical footballer’s outlook. Some players go home after matches and remain awake until 5am because of all the adrenaline. Maybe I try and unload it in a different way.

“I’m not going to change my ways just because people ask me to, but I appreciate not everyone agrees with it and I accept the consequences of that.”

Nainggolan admitted he would have enjoyed being coached by Conte, who twice tried to sign him while in charge of Juventus and Chelsea.

“In that one month we had I realised he’s a fantastic coach,” he continued.

“He knows how to motivate you and how to set a team up, he speaks with everyone and gives importance to everyone. I won’t have that experience now but I accept his decision.

“I tried to change his mind when we went on the tour in Asia. I gave everything I had but I wasn’t successful.”

Inter play Cagliari at the Sardegna Arena on Sunday and Nainggolan assured he would be out to show his parent club they were wrong to offload him.

He also revealed Nicolò Barella was excited by the prospect of playing with him in Milan, only for Nainggolan to leave within two weeks of his arrival.

“When he came to Inter he told me: ‘Radja, you and I have to play together, we have to take on everyone’,” Nainggolan explained.

“I’d have liked to give him a hand getting used to such a different reality like Inter, but he has the quality to become a great player.”

Nainggolan then touched on Mauro Icardi’s fragile situation at Inter, appearing to confirm reports of dressing room unrest last season.

He said: “I can assure you Icardi is not a nasty guy, but we know what happened last season. His wife made those comments and not everyone forgives easily.

“Personally I haven’t even heard them because I don’t watch football programs on TV.”

Nainggolan confirmed he watched Inter’s victory against Lecce on Monday, but added it was only because there was nothing better on television.

He then named Matteo Politano as his closest friend in the Nerazzurri’s dressing room, with Marcelo Brozovic, Ivan Perisic, Samir Handanovic and Andrea Ranocchia also mentioned.

On Inter’s former boss Luciano Spalletti, Nainggolan concluded: “He’s got a lot of inner strength, but in the last month of the season after his brother died I saw his fragility for the first time.

“I didn’t give him the right kind of contribution on the pitch, not least because of injuries, but we achieved our objective in the end.”