On the Eve of Inter Milan's Upheaval, Why Did Mancini Choose This Moment to Head to Britain?

After hanging up the phone, Chivu was completely dumbfounded.

His car was stopped at the traffic light intersection, and the light had been on for more than ten seconds before it turned green, but the car still hadn't started.

The loudspeaker behind us kept beeping.

"Hey, you in front, hurry up and move!" someone shouted from the car window.

Although Chivu is an Inter Milan legend and a key player in the 2010 treble-winning season, holding an important place in the club's history.

But he is currently just a junior coach for a small first-team team.

If Mr. Moratti were still here, things would be fine, but the current president is Thohir, a hands-off manager who has no affection for Inter Milan. Add to that Ausilio, a treacherous expert who uses public funds for travel, Chivu wouldn't know who to turn to even if he tried to stop the coach and plead his case.

Mancini is the mentor who brought Chivu from Roma to Inter Milan. He is the person Chivu admires most at Inter Milan at this stage, and is also the second best coach in his heart after Mourinho.

Mancini also holds an extremely high position within Inter Milan, second only to Mourinho in recent years.

Faced with Inter Milan's current disintegration, a desperate Chivu originally wanted to ask Mancini for his thoughts and see if he had any solutions.

But he never dreamed that Mancini would actually join the England national team!

Wasn't he dreaming of coaching the Italy National Team someday? How did he end up in England? He even said he wanted to be an assistant coach.

When faced with this invitation, Chivu neither agreed nor disagreed, only saying that he would think about it.

His mind is a complete mess right now, and he feels numb.

"This season is a nightmare. Everyone's leaving, even Mr. Mancini. You can all go, just leave me here alone..." Chivu slammed on the gas in frustration, the car roared away, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Let's rewind to two weeks ago.

Back when Inter Milan sold Icardi, and there were rumors that Tang Long would also be put on the transfer market.

Mancini astutely realized that Inter Milan owner Thohir might be planning to cash out and run away!

He coached in Serie A for many years, and in addition to top clubs like Serie A Inter Milan, he also coached mid-table teams like Fiorentina and Lazio.

He knew that selling key players was a perfectly normal thing for Lazio and Fiorentina.

Because these teams don't have much ambition, and the owners never include winning the championship in their season's KPI assessment.

But Inter Milan is Inter Milan after all; Inter Milan is not Lazio, much less Fiorentina!

The championship is always the team's ultimate goal.

In recent years, the economic environment in Serie A has not been good. Even the top teams have had to sell key players in order to maintain a balance between income and expenditure.

However, after Inter Milan sold Icardi for a record Pound Sterling 80 million, they were already very wealthy on the books, so selling Tang Long at this point seemed extremely unusual.

In Mancini's mind, Tang Long has a higher tactical status than Icardi. He is the absolute core of the team. Inter Milan with Tang Long and Inter Milan without him are completely different teams. Mancini, who has coached the team for a season, knows this better than anyone else.

This is ridiculous! I still have two years left on my contract. How am I supposed to lead the team next season?

I can't exactly say that I won the double this season, but we can't even qualify for the UEFA Europa League next season, can I? Where would that leave Mancini's reputation? If the team performs poorly, there will be a lot of public pressure, and I'll be the one who gets sacked and has to take the blame!

As the team's head coach, he immediately went to Ausilio's office to demand an explanation.

Ausilio is a cunning old fox in front of Chivu, and can even put on the airs of a sporting director, acting arrogantly and condescendingly.

However, even in front of the renowned coach Mancini, he had to be polite and respectful.

"Old Mann, we've been working together for quite a while now, so let me be honest with you. Mr. Thohir is trying to cash out quickly after the team won the championship and the players' market value skyrockets."

"Don't blame me for being heartless, brother. I'm just an employee. I do what the boss tells me to do, right?"

"Besides, you know perfectly well what Thohir's purpose was in buying Inter Milan from Moratti back then. Wasn't it to wait for the assets to appreciate and then cash out to make a profit from the difference?"

"The owner has been staying in United States playing basketball. Think about it, he didn't even come to watch the UEFA Europa League final. His investment focus has long since Serie A away from Serie A. Inter Milan is like an orphan..."

Mancini had been coaching for many years and had seen it all; he never trusted Thohir, the Indonesian businessman, from the very beginning.

As president, Thohir only had one public speech with Mancini last November at his inauguration ceremony at Inter Milan.

We haven't even exchanged a single text message in private, let alone had a conversation with each other!

This is a world apart from the Moratti administration when Mancini first took over, who treated Inter Milan like his own child. No matter how busy his family's oil refining business was, he would always make time to come to every home game to cheer for Inter Milan, and he would even occasionally come to the midweek training sessions to chat with the players.

Moratti's desire for control over the team once put Mancini under immense pressure and caused him considerable resentment.

However, Thohir's completely hands-off management style represents another extreme.

Mancini recalled his hard work coaching Inter Milan for a season, bringing them two prestigious trophies: the Coppa Italia and the UEFA Europa League. In the end, all he got in return was the inflated value of the players, which led to their cashing out. A sense of humiliation, as if he had been working for someone else's benefit, welled up within him.

He had been secretly hoping that if Inter Milan could retain its current core and address its weaknesses, they would have the strength to challenge Juventus for the league title next season!

Mancini is hoping to overturn Juventus's four-year Serie A dominance. If he succeeds, it will be a major achievement in his coaching career, even more worthy of pride and honor than leading Inter Milan to three consecutive Serie A titles.

After a three-hour in-depth conversation with Ausilio and learning about Inter Milan's transformation into a business strategy focused on nurturing young players, Mancini realized how ridiculous these expectations were, how they had long since vanished, and that it was time for him to withdraw.

"Ausilio, let me tell you what's on my mind. I came to Serie A from the Premier League to prove myself again, that I am still a world-class coach."

"This season, I did it at Inter Milan. I helped the club win the championship and return to the UEFA Champions League, exceeding the KPIs set for me by the owner."

"We've already sold Icardi, and Dom is leaving too. Judging from your tone, you're going to sell more key players? If a large portion of the starting lineup leaves next season, and you then assign me a few youngsters, leaving me with a mess, I don't think I need to stay at Inter Milan anymore. You should know my salary is very high!"

Mancini signed a two-and-a-half-year contract with Inter Milan, with a salary of 4 million euros per year after tax.

If the contract is fully fulfilled, Inter Milan will have to spend as much as 20 million euros on him, including taxes.

After doing the math, Ausilio realized it really wasn't a good deal.

However, Ausilio couldn't make the decision to terminate the head coach's contract, so he immediately contacted Thohir, who was in the United States.

The two discussed it over the phone and realized that spending 8 million euros a year on coaching a group of young players next season was really not worthwhile.

Ausilio told Mancini the next day, "We can terminate your contract early, but for the remaining 23 months, we can only offer you a 2 million euro release clause, and the official announcement won't be made until August 1st. After all, too many people are leaving at once, and Mr. Thohir is afraid of being criticized by the Italy media, and I can't handle it either."

Ausilio finished speaking with trepidation. He had originally thought that Mancini would fly into a rage, give him a good scolding over the phone, and then haggle with him for ten days or half a month.

But to everyone's surprise, Mancini readily agreed without hesitation.

This made Ausilio regret his decision. He should have offered a lower price and gotten a kickback from Mancini's release clause, even if it was just four or five hundred thousand euros. Every little bit helps.

Mancini's eagerness to leave Inter Milan clearly indicates that he has already found a new club!

He received an offer that he couldn't refuse.

The England national team has extended an offer to Mancini, wanting to appoint him as the manager of the Three Lions, with a three-year contract and a salary of Pound Sterling 5 million, to lead the Three Lions in the 2016 UEFA European Championship!

The Football Association has taken a liking to Mancini's managerial record at Inter Milan this season, which has turned the tide for the club.

His performance in the UEFA Europa League, in particular, was a breath of fresh air for the whole of Europe!

In addition, Mancini had previously managed Manchester City for three years, so he had a certain understanding of England players, and there were no problems with English language communication.

Taking all factors into consideration, the Football Association believes that Mancini is the best choice for their national team to replace the aging current manager Hodgson, who is already 68 years old and showing signs of fatigue due to health issues.

After receiving the invitation, Mancini was caught in a deep struggle.

He originally wanted to coach the Italy National Team, which was his professional dream as an Italy coach.

However, Conte, the current head coach of the Italy National Team, has only been in charge for a year and his position is very secure. It is a certainty that he will lead the national team to the UEFA European Championship next year.

It's 2015 now, exactly one year before the UEFA European Championship. If he were to take over the England national team now, he would have ample time to scout suitable candidates for the Premier League next season.

But that means he might have to lead England against his home country Italy in the UEFA European Championship, and the thought of that made Mancini feel uneasy.

He even wondered whether he should celebrate if England scored.

It wasn't until his agent's words awakened Mancini and ignited his immense pride that he finally made up his mind!

"Since World War II, the England national team has had 18 managers, only two of whom were foreigners."

"This is a very arrogant country. They use Pound Sterling instead of euros, they think English is the best language in the world, and they even want to leave the European Union. The fact that they invite you instead of using their own coaches shows how much they value you."

"Historically, no Italy has ever led a foreign national team to win a continental cup title. If you do, your name will be recorded in the annals of Italy football history, alongside Lippi."

"Besides, there's the World Cup in three years. Don't you want to lead England to take on that challenge?"

A few days later, Mancini returned to Ausilio's office and signed the termination agreement with him.

Ausilio exchanged some pleasantries and wished him all the best for the future.

He has worked at Inter Milan Inter Milan for 17 years, initially joining the club in 1998 as the head of youth development and later promoted to sporting director in 2010. Although the club has changed owners, he has kept his job.

Mancini joined Inter Milan in 2004 and worked with Ausilio, but for more than a decade, his relationship with the Inter Milan veteran remained lukewarm.

During his two stints as Inter Milan manager, spanning five seasons, Mancini brought the Inter Milan three Serie A titles, five Coppa Italia titles, two Italian Super Cup titles, and one UEFA Europa League title.

Although he never led Inter Milan to UEFA Champions League, in terms of the number of trophies he has won, Mancini is undoubtedly Inter Milan's greatest coach.

He wasn't as passionate as Chivu, who loved his Inter Milan so much that he would break his skull and risk his life!

However, as Inter Milan's head coach, Mancini has always been dedicated to his job and fulfilled his responsibilities, preparing meticulously for every match and never slacking off.

In those five seasons, all the bonuses and salary he received came from the portion stipulated in his contract; he never received a single penny of kickback.

If he completes his contract with the England national team, he will be 54 years old. Perhaps, in the twilight of his coaching career, he will not have the opportunity to return to Inter Milan for a third stint.

Thinking of this, Mancini was suddenly moved.

This club is where he made his name, where he went from being an ordinary coach to becoming a champion coach.

Is it really time to leave?

Mancini recalled some familiar names: Recoba, Adriano, Stankovic, Cambiasso, Balotelli...

His hand, holding the pen, trembled as he signed the termination agreement.

"After I leave, who do you plan to appoint as Inter Milan's head coach?" Mancini suddenly asked.

Ausilio smiled to himself, thinking, "You've already taken the penalty and left. You're really overthinking things. I'll just discuss this with the boss, why are you worrying about it?"

He casually remarked, "You really admire Chivu, don't you? I'll let him take over; his salary will definitely be lower."

Ausilio was just joking; he certainly wouldn't let Chivu take over.

This guy considers himself an Inter Milan legend, and he's arrogant and doesn't even respect me, the sporting director. Once Mancini leaves, he'll fire all his cronies, with Chivu being the first to go.

Mancini paused, a lump in his throat, and slowly said, "Christian is not suitable for this position now. You must not harm him. I want to take him to England."

"Why? So many people are vying for this position."

"Because he loves his Inter Milan too much, he's not suited for this place."

After Mancini finished speaking, he picked up the termination contract from the table, waved it at Ausilio —both to say goodbye to his old colleague and to bid farewell to his five-year career at Inter Milan —before striding out of the house.

(There's one more chapter, which I'll probably post around midnight. Those of you who go to bed early can read it tomorrow morning.)