Rafa Benitez sacked by Inter Milan – report

Reports from Italy are suggesting that Rafa Benitez has been sacked as manager of Inter Milan.

Although there is no official confirmation of Benitez’s sacking from Inter Milan, well placed sources at some of the leading newspapers in Italy have reported that he has been relieved of his position and will be replaced by Luciano Spalletti, currently in charge of Russian side Zenit St Petersburg.

Benitez has struggled at Inter since his appointment as the successor to José Mourinho, who won the Serie A title, the Champions League and the Coppa Italia with the Nerazzurri last season before departing for Real Madrid.

Inter Milan currently lie in seventh in the Serie A table, trailing crosstown rivals AC Milan by thirteen points, and have won only one of their last six league games. They have qualified for the knockout stages of the Champions League, but finished second in Group A behind Champions League newcomers Tottenham Hotspur.

Inter president Massimo Moratti has refused to comment on the matter, saying: "I prefer not to talk today (Monday) to avoid the risk of creating controversies."

The club won their fifth trophy of 2010 after defeating Congolese side TP Mazembe in the final of the Club World Cup on Saturday night, but that hasn’t relieved the pressure on Benitez, something that was evident in his comments after the game.

"There are three possibilities for the club,” he said.

“One, 100% support for the coach and buy four or five players to build a stronger team with competition among the players to be able to carry on winning matches and trophies.

"Two, carry on like this without a project, without planning, and go ahead with one person to blame, for the whole season.

"The third," he added, "is to speak to my agent to reach an agreement if there is not this support. Simple."