Mancini: No sympathy for McLeish

Inter Milan coach Roberto Mancini insists he cannot afford to feel any sympathy for Rangers boss Alex McLeish when the two clubs meet in the Champions League tomorrow night.

The match at Ibrox is expected to be McLeish’s last in charge, following an horrendous run of results in the Bank of Scotland Premier League.

A win against the Italians means Rangers would become the first Scottish club to reach the knockout stages of the Champions League.

But that is unlikely to save McLeish’s job, after the Scottish champions slipped to fifth in the SPL, 17 points behind leaders Celtic .

Mancini is keen to see Inter secure a victory, even though they are already confirmed as the winners of Group H, but he reckons that, if McLeish must go, he should leave on a high.

Speaking of the pressure the Rangers boss is under, he said: “Unfortunately, that is life for managers but it is always better to be sacked after a victory than after losing a game.

“I wouldn’t say I feel sympathy, that’s the job unfortunately. But McLeish did very well last year and won the title so I am confident he will manage to get through tomorrow.”

Even so, Mancini admits he did not expect to be facing a Rangers side toiling to remain in the top half of the SPL table.

“I am a bit surprised,” he admitted. “Usually Rangers is one of the first teams in the Scottish championship.

“I have also noticed that they are doing very well in the Champions League and sometimes that means leaving a few points behind in the championship.

“But I believe they will make it an important game tomorrow night. I expect the supporters will play a part for Rangers.”

Mancini named a squad of 19 players to make the trip to Glasgow this evening, with Luis Figo, Juan Sebastian Veron, Julio Cruz, Kily Gonzalez and Dejan Stankovic among the notable omissions.

But the Nerazzurri boss warned that being without some of their star names does not mean Rangers can expect an easy time.

“The reason why I left a few players at home was because they were not physically fit for the match and I didn’t want to take a risk with those players,” he explained.

“But I believe I have a competitive team, who will be playing a competitive game tomorrow.

“I am confident Inter will play a fair game, and will try to win, out of respect for the competition.”