Inter vs Real Madrid: Bernabeu Return Tests Chivu’s Identity

Cristian Chivu is taking Inter back to the Santiago Bernabeu, the stadium where Jose Mourinho guided the Nerazzurri to their third and most recent Champions League crown in 2010, for a Tuesday night Champions League opener against Real Madrid.

Chivu played under Mourinho during that historic treble campaign, and the bond between the two men remains strong despite Tuesday’s touchline battle. Speaking at his pre-match press conference, as covered by Goal, the Romanian did not hold back on what his former manager means to him.

Mourinho is a special person for me. Meeting him was a stroke of luck. Chivu said Mourinho helped him during the most difficult moment of his life, a debt he insists he will never forget.

Chivu Draws the Line Between Respect and Imitation

Fully aware of the pressure that comes with leading Inter into Europe, Chivu insisted the club has an obligation to write important pages in its history. Real Madrid have won the last four meetings between the two sides, with Inter’s most recent victory over the Spanish giants dating back to the 1998-99 season, and the Nerazzurri have not won at the Bernabeu itself for six decades.

Despite the weight of that history, Chivu was firm that Tuesday’s assignment will not push Inter away from their own identity. He wants his side to remain dominant and to show they have grown, without changing who they are.

Asked directly how much of Mourinho features in his own football philosophy, Chivu was unambiguous. I have never copied anyone. I have my own idea of football, built as a player and during my years in the youth sector, where I had the opportunity to experiment with things that are helping me these years.

Inter’s Champions League campaign, mapped out in detail in the club’s fixture schedule, could hardly have handed Chivu a tougher opening test than a return to the scene of Mourinho’s crowning glory, against the very man whose Real Madrid project now stands in his way.