Interesting interview with Nesta, from today's edition of La Gazzetta dello Sport (translated by a cool milanista in XT):
"We are taking it one month at a time and we will see how it goes. I don't have any desire to quit. If it was because of my injury problems then I would have quit 10 years ago."
We were asking why your contract is about to run out, and it seemed that you didn't have the intention to continue playing.
"I have the intention to keep on playing, but it's a relation between two parties. At the end of the season, I will talk with the club and we will make a decision together."
Last year Pirlo left. Do you miss him?
"I felt bad, but I didn't take it out on Allegri nor Galliani. A moment arrives where you have to make choices. Work relations end and that's what happened with Andrea. I'm happy because he's at a great club and he's fighting for the Scudetto. Andrea will always be a friend, even if he had gone to Inter."
Somebody said that he was finished as a player.
"I don't know who that was. Pirlo has a natural talent and you can't lose your talent. You can lose strength or the ability to run, but not talent."
Allegri seems to be the one who sent Ronaldinho away, who set aside the old guard, who dealt with Pato in the wrong way, who left Inzaghi out, who let Pirlo leave...
"Who says these things? I have never heard them before."
Let's just say that someone is whispering...
"I have always had a good relation with Allegri. He has always let me play and I'm also a part of the old guard. I can only say good things about the way that he handles things. If there has been any misunderstanding with someone then it will fade away."
Did it surprise you to see Thiago Silva with the captain's armband?
"To me, it wasn't a shocking decision. We are talking about one match. The captain is Ambrosini and everybody knows that."
Does it surprise you to see your friend Pirlo's Juve at the top of the table?
"To us, Juventus is the toughest team to face, along with Inter. In Inter's case the key will be the derby; winning the derby would maybe give them the death blow. On the other hand, if they win then it might give them a kick start. Milan are still the favorites for the Scudetto, but Juve are working well and seeing them at the top of the table isn't a surprise."
Then tell us about something that has surprised you.
"Nocerino's goals and the way that he makes inserting runs with ease. He is a good player, but not even himself expected to have such a good start to the season with Milan. In general, I haven't seen many surprises. Maybe Udinese have been surprising. They have sold many players and yet they continue to be there, or rather; they're doing even better."
You talked about Pirlo's talent. Who is the best player that you have ever played with?
"There has been many: Veron, Mancini, Sheva, Kakà... Pirlo is in the top 3. Ronaldo was definitely the best player."
As an outsider, how do you see Italy faring at the European Championship?
"They're taking form, there wasn't any generation gap. Now you have people like Balotelli, Cassano, De Rossi, Marchisio who can take Italy far. But there's not much between winning or losing. We won the World Cup on penalties. But the team is strong."
Is there also nothing between winning or losing the Scudetto?
"No, the Scudetto is a different case, and the Champions is a bit like that too. It will be two tough matches against Arsenal. Arsenal are stronger than Tottenham who eliminated us last year. But it's a squad that is well-suited to us, and if we find ourselves to be in the right situation then we can go a long way in the Champions League."
Do you think that Milan can win the Champions League?
"I think that Milan can do better than we have done in the past few years, where we, sometimes, were knocked because of bad luck and sometimes not. But Barcelona are from another planet. Real Madrid have also tried to beat them in every way, practically without succeeding to."
Do you think that Milan is playing well?
"We are having fun and I think that the fans are also having fun. Milan attacks a lot."
But they say that you're laying it all on Ibra...
"Ibra takes away three players. Do you think that Barcelona without Messi is the same team?"
Who is the best coach in the world?
"The numbers and facts say Mourinho. I like Guardiola and then there is the old guard like Ancelotti and there are newcomers like Allegri and Conte. And then the law of years also goes for coaches: sometimes you're number one, and other times nobody remembers you."
Speaking of years: perhaps the image of Cassano has changed a bit.
"Antonio has done many messed up things, but deep down inside he's a good person. If you enter his world and you understand him then things will become simplified. The arguments with him only last two minutes: it's an instinct."
Is Ibra also an instinct?
"Yes, you argue and you forget. Everybody is friends here."
Perhaps because they don't want to get hit.
"(Laughs). That's a good way of interpreting it."
If Tevez also arrive, will you then prepare a boxing ring?
"Tevez is small, and Ibra is much bigger. Nobody beats each other here. It happened with Onyewu, and then nothing has happened after that."
Have you ever been in a fight with someone?
"I have often been close to, also with team mates. When the nervousness on the pitch rises then everything can happen."
But still you seem as one who stays away from these things...
"No no, I often argue with my team mates and opponents. I talk a lot when I'm on the pitch. I don't talk a lot with journalists, and my character is such that I prefer to stay outside of the spotlight."
What would you like to change about your career?
"I want to eliminate some injuries. I have had too many of them."
Do you ever think of your future?
I don't know. I will take the license to become a coach. I will start at the third level.
Do you see yourself as a coach?
"I would like that."
Do you want to return to Lazio, and to live in Rome in general?
"No. Rome is perhaps the most beautiful city in the world. I have my parents and my loved ones there, but I feel well in Milano and I want to keep on living here."
Are you surprised that Maldini still hasn't returned to Milan?
"He is enjoying his life and his family. Sooner or later he will do something."
Has Italian football become a pizzeria or is it still a luxury restaurant?
"In my opinion it's a restaurant. Up until last year we had Eto'o, and Ibra decided to return. If our league continues to attract the best players, then it functions."
To be honest, many new big names haven't arrived.
"Ibra is more than enough."
Nesta, when it happens, how do you want to end your career?
"In a decent way, in a phase where I'm descending but not dead on the pitch. And I think that I have the intelligence to understand when the right day has come."
"We are taking it one month at a time and we will see how it goes. I don't have any desire to quit. If it was because of my injury problems then I would have quit 10 years ago."
We were asking why your contract is about to run out, and it seemed that you didn't have the intention to continue playing.
"I have the intention to keep on playing, but it's a relation between two parties. At the end of the season, I will talk with the club and we will make a decision together."
Last year Pirlo left. Do you miss him?
"I felt bad, but I didn't take it out on Allegri nor Galliani. A moment arrives where you have to make choices. Work relations end and that's what happened with Andrea. I'm happy because he's at a great club and he's fighting for the Scudetto. Andrea will always be a friend, even if he had gone to Inter."
Somebody said that he was finished as a player.
"I don't know who that was. Pirlo has a natural talent and you can't lose your talent. You can lose strength or the ability to run, but not talent."
Allegri seems to be the one who sent Ronaldinho away, who set aside the old guard, who dealt with Pato in the wrong way, who left Inzaghi out, who let Pirlo leave...
"Who says these things? I have never heard them before."
Let's just say that someone is whispering...
"I have always had a good relation with Allegri. He has always let me play and I'm also a part of the old guard. I can only say good things about the way that he handles things. If there has been any misunderstanding with someone then it will fade away."
Did it surprise you to see Thiago Silva with the captain's armband?
"To me, it wasn't a shocking decision. We are talking about one match. The captain is Ambrosini and everybody knows that."
Does it surprise you to see your friend Pirlo's Juve at the top of the table?
"To us, Juventus is the toughest team to face, along with Inter. In Inter's case the key will be the derby; winning the derby would maybe give them the death blow. On the other hand, if they win then it might give them a kick start. Milan are still the favorites for the Scudetto, but Juve are working well and seeing them at the top of the table isn't a surprise."
Then tell us about something that has surprised you.
"Nocerino's goals and the way that he makes inserting runs with ease. He is a good player, but not even himself expected to have such a good start to the season with Milan. In general, I haven't seen many surprises. Maybe Udinese have been surprising. They have sold many players and yet they continue to be there, or rather; they're doing even better."
You talked about Pirlo's talent. Who is the best player that you have ever played with?
"There has been many: Veron, Mancini, Sheva, Kakà... Pirlo is in the top 3. Ronaldo was definitely the best player."
As an outsider, how do you see Italy faring at the European Championship?
"They're taking form, there wasn't any generation gap. Now you have people like Balotelli, Cassano, De Rossi, Marchisio who can take Italy far. But there's not much between winning or losing. We won the World Cup on penalties. But the team is strong."
Is there also nothing between winning or losing the Scudetto?
"No, the Scudetto is a different case, and the Champions is a bit like that too. It will be two tough matches against Arsenal. Arsenal are stronger than Tottenham who eliminated us last year. But it's a squad that is well-suited to us, and if we find ourselves to be in the right situation then we can go a long way in the Champions League."
Do you think that Milan can win the Champions League?
"I think that Milan can do better than we have done in the past few years, where we, sometimes, were knocked because of bad luck and sometimes not. But Barcelona are from another planet. Real Madrid have also tried to beat them in every way, practically without succeeding to."
Do you think that Milan is playing well?
"We are having fun and I think that the fans are also having fun. Milan attacks a lot."
But they say that you're laying it all on Ibra...
"Ibra takes away three players. Do you think that Barcelona without Messi is the same team?"
Who is the best coach in the world?
"The numbers and facts say Mourinho. I like Guardiola and then there is the old guard like Ancelotti and there are newcomers like Allegri and Conte. And then the law of years also goes for coaches: sometimes you're number one, and other times nobody remembers you."
Speaking of years: perhaps the image of Cassano has changed a bit.
"Antonio has done many messed up things, but deep down inside he's a good person. If you enter his world and you understand him then things will become simplified. The arguments with him only last two minutes: it's an instinct."
Is Ibra also an instinct?
"Yes, you argue and you forget. Everybody is friends here."
Perhaps because they don't want to get hit.
"(Laughs). That's a good way of interpreting it."
If Tevez also arrive, will you then prepare a boxing ring?
"Tevez is small, and Ibra is much bigger. Nobody beats each other here. It happened with Onyewu, and then nothing has happened after that."
Have you ever been in a fight with someone?
"I have often been close to, also with team mates. When the nervousness on the pitch rises then everything can happen."
But still you seem as one who stays away from these things...
"No no, I often argue with my team mates and opponents. I talk a lot when I'm on the pitch. I don't talk a lot with journalists, and my character is such that I prefer to stay outside of the spotlight."
What would you like to change about your career?
"I want to eliminate some injuries. I have had too many of them."
Do you ever think of your future?
I don't know. I will take the license to become a coach. I will start at the third level.
Do you see yourself as a coach?
"I would like that."
Do you want to return to Lazio, and to live in Rome in general?
"No. Rome is perhaps the most beautiful city in the world. I have my parents and my loved ones there, but I feel well in Milano and I want to keep on living here."
Are you surprised that Maldini still hasn't returned to Milan?
"He is enjoying his life and his family. Sooner or later he will do something."
Has Italian football become a pizzeria or is it still a luxury restaurant?
"In my opinion it's a restaurant. Up until last year we had Eto'o, and Ibra decided to return. If our league continues to attract the best players, then it functions."
To be honest, many new big names haven't arrived.
"Ibra is more than enough."
Nesta, when it happens, how do you want to end your career?
"In a decent way, in a phase where I'm descending but not dead on the pitch. And I think that I have the intelligence to understand when the right day has come."
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