Hiring Chivu a Somewhat Calculated Risk for Inter | OneFootball

The most surprising aspect of the rather sudden coaching change at Inter wasn’t that Simone Inzaghi actually gave in to the Al-Hilal courtship when the exodus from Europe to the Saudi Pro League has significantly abated but rather that the front office didn’t have a replacement in hand even though the chatter had been intensifying for quite a while.

Unusual Unpreparedness

The Nerazzurri have faced numerous challenges during the Giuseppe Marotta era, ranging from common issues such as significant injuries, major departures, and complex negotiations to more unusual and nerve-wracking problems, including financial difficulties and a takeover triggered by the owner’s insolvency. Yet, they always seemed cool, calm, and collected. Not this time, though, as they had to scramble.

That lends credence to the belief that Inzaghi did decide after the Champions League final. Although, it’s strange that such a debacle, paired with fumbling away the Scudetto again, led to his departure and instead didn’t stoke a more understandable and common spirit of revenge and sensation of unfinished business that could have powered him and the squad for the entire next campaign. Thanks to that fuel, many scorned teams have redeemed themselves across all sports in history.

A Couple of Missed Opportunities

Instead, Inzaghi packed his bags and fled, ending a cycle that really wasn’t, nor for its length, nor its level of success, one Scudetto and several secondary domestic trophies. Reaching the Champions League final twice in three years is a massive achievement. However, it’ll ultimately fade into the history books. He should have stuck around and exploited the chance to silence his critics in what is shaping up to be a more riveting Serie A season. More big clubs should be really in the mix in 2025/2026, if Napoli don’t run away with it.

If Marotta had known in advance, Massimiliano Allegri would have most likely been on the Inter bench now. His style of football is blah, but it’s hard to argue that it hasn’t been successful when he has had star-filled squads at his disposal. The issues come when he needs to elevate a mediocre roster through X’s and O’s. La Beneamata has everything in place to be successful with a proven peacetime general at the helm who just needs to find the right motivation in each game, manage the various personalities, and navigate the peaks and valleys.

A Coach Hand-Picked by the Inter Brass

Instead, Inter are taking a leap into the unknown with a very raw coach in Christian Chivu, who has been working in the pros for basically half a season. They know him better than everybody else given his time at San Siro as a player and especially in the youth system. They evidently thought he had the right personality for a more difficult job and to handle the forthcoming difficulties.

His stint at Parma was perfectly fine, but nothing to write home about. They were superior to most of the other relegation struggles. They shouldn’t have been in so much trouble to begin with. He got them back on track, rallied the troops, and landed the plane, although it was a little more difficult than it should have been down the stretch.

Chivu and Fabregas

He inherited a bold 4-3-3/4-2-3-1 and quickly turned it into a rock-solid 3-5-2, which likely raised his appeal. There’s a gulf between the two in terms of experience, but he’s not far off from Allegri stylistically. The debate between fancy football and pragmatism is everlasting. The second philosophy has notched more than a few wins. Inter could use some tightening of the screws in the back. They lost the Scudetto for a few reasons: one of the main ones is that they weren’t as airtight defensively as in the previous campaign, and surely not as much as Napoli.

Choosing Chivu, or Patrick Vieira, who’s the same type of gaffer, but more seasoned and less familiar with the team, is less enticing and exciting than appointing Cesc Fabregas, but also less risky. They surely would have done it hadn’t Como staved off every suitor. While he’s been brilliant, he’s not been coaching for much longer than his Romanian colleague. While he smoothed out the more extreme aspects of his football in his first Serie A season, it would have been a much more challenging transition. He would probably have had to adjust to their scheme, rather than the other way around. There’s really just one that fits them considering the traits and quality of their defenders and wingbacks. Plus, it would have probably been a challenging fit off the pitch too. He’s very hands-on concerning the transfer market and everything else at Como. Instead, the Nerazzurri have a more traditional top-down structure. It looks like the talks didn’t get that far, but he might not have liked to have his powers reduced.

A Constrictive Decision-Making Process

Ultimately, Chivu was a logical choice for the route they took. The big question is whether it was the right one to begin with. It’s unclear why they limited the pool from the get-go, only shortlisting up-and-coming gaffers who have already worked in Italy. Perhaps a youngster who shone abroad would have been too much of a shot in the dark. It’s somewhat understandable not to go there. But there’s no shortage of middle-aged coaches who were gettable and would have been more sure things even if they hadn’t managed in Serie A yet.

They could and perhaps have thought outside the box, which would have brought in a bigger breath of fresh air to get rid of the stench of the collapse in Munich and start anew, even though the squad won’t change much. However, that’s not how Marotta operates, as he’s super careful with his hires. Chivu is actually the first foreign boss he has hired in his 46-year career as an executive, but he has spent most of his life in Peninsula at this point. We’ll know soon enough whether such a glaring blind spot is deleterious.