Friday, 16 February 2007

Inter in sight of 'big five' record

When they host Cagliari on Saturday, Inter can beat Bayern Munich and Real Madrid's records for consecutive wins in their respective leagues.

By prevailing at Chievo last Sunday, the Nerazzurri collected their 15th Serie A victory in a row and surpassed the records set in the English, French and Italian top flights. In Europe's other two 'big five' leagues, only Sapin's Real Madrid in 1960/61 and Germany's Bayern, between 2004/05 and 2005/06, have had similar winning streaks in the past.

Coach Roberto Mancini, however, is continuing to stress that silverware, and not records, makes a team great. Inter legend Luis Suarez agrees. The Spaniard, who lifted the European Cup twice with the Nerazzurri in the 1960s, knew that famous Real Madrid side - featuring Ferenc Puskas, Francisco 'Paco' Gento and Alfredo Di Stefano - well after facing them several times during his days at Barcelona.

"Comparing that Real Madrid to the current Inter is just impossible at this stage," Suarez said. "Real Madrid won an incredible series of trophies while Inter have just started to realise how strong they are. Inter have done well to equal that record and they can also continue on this path, but that Real Madrid side was just incredible."

The Nerazzurri are eleven points clear of closest rivals Roma, who visit fourth-placed Empoli. Mancini may not care about chasing Celtic's 25-game winning run in Scotland, but another victory against Cagliari would certainly mean another stride towards the Scudetto.

No comments:

Post a Comment