22.10.2013 19:45 h

Football: Inter young team is way forward, says new owner

Derby-Pleite
Derby-Pleite

New majority shareholder Erick Thohir has pledged to integrate some of Inter Milan's youth team players into the Serie A side as the Indonesian plans a future for the club filled with success.

Thohir bought a 70 percent stake in Inter Milan, Italy's last winners of the Champions League in 2010, last week and believes the club's 'Primavera' youth team holds one of the keys to future success.

"My dream? It's to use more players from the youth team, which is doing very well in their own championship," Thohir is reported as saying in La Repubblica newspaper Tuesday.

"We need to be confident. I think a number of younger Italian players are worth giving a shot in the first team to show what they have to offer."

Inter, whose full name is Internazionale', has always had a tradition for welcoming foreign players to the club, which plays in the same San Siro ground as city rivals AC Milan.

Currently, Inter's foreign legion is primarily made up of players from South America, notably Argentina (Ricardo Alvarez, Diego Milito, Rodrigo Palacio, Esteban Cambiasso, Mauro Icardi) and Colombia (Fredy Guarin).

Thohir -- who has one eye on opening up new markets and fan bases in Asia, including Japan -- added that he wants a "mixture of experience and youth, led by players like Guarin and (Japan's Yuto) Nagatomo."

Such statements are likely to stun fans hoping Thohir's millions will mean the purchase of established big-name stars from Europe and beyond.

The 43-year-old insisted: "I've come to Inter to win."

Thohir, who made his fortune in establishing and taking over media companies, is no stranger to the international sports business arena.

He bought into Major League Soccer club DC United and the Philadelphia 76ers basketball team, both of which showed marked improvements in performance since his involvement.