Massimo Moratti

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Massimo Moratti (born May 16, 1945 in Bosco Chiesanuova) is an Italian oil tycoon. He is the owner and president of the Serie A football club Internazionale.

He is the son of the beloved Angelo Moratti, who was owner and president during Inter's golden age in the 1960s. It has long been the younger Moratti's ambition to restore Inter to the heights they once knew under his father. He has to date fallen short of that goal, winning :

1 UEFA Cup (1998)
1 Scudetto/Serie A (2006)
2 Coppa Italia (2005, 2006)
2 Supercoppa Italiana (2005, 2006)

The Scudetto victory of 2005/6 was, itself, controversial. Inter finished third in Serie A, but were awarded the title following the punishment of Juventus and Milan for their involvement in Italy's high profile match-fixing scandal.

Moratti is widely criticized among Inter fans for always making poor decisions in the transfer market. Alongside releasing Pirlo to AC Milan, many fans criticize him for allowing some of the recent signings at Inter, such as Cesar, and his continual retainment of Recoba. The Inter fanbase was also divided at the end of the 2006 summer transfer window when persistent rumours of an Adriano-Ronaldo swap persisted, with no denial from Moratti nor the coach Mancini about them. The release of Obafemi Martins has also caused the Inter fans to express some dismay, leaving the club with three strikers over the age of 30 for the start of the 06/07 Serie A season, and depriving the club of a very promising prospect.

Moratti has continually backed his managers in the transfer market with his own money to an extent only exceeded by Roman Abramovich. In July 1999 he sanctioned a then world-record €48m purchase of striker Christian Vieri and has since purchased numerous superstars including Adriano, Crespo, Ibrahimovic, Cruz, Vieira and Veron. Despite these outlays, domestic success remained elusive until the 'scudetto win' of 2005/06, and "Moratti out....Inter club forever" banners can regularly be seen at Inter matches.