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"I consider those who are at Inter as Inter players only. I don't regard them as foreigners or Italians," said Inter president Giacinto Facchetti in reply to today's media reports about the Nerazzurri starting line-up that faced Artmedia in Champions League on Wednesday.

"Many of them have been with us for many years," added Facchetti. "Others came through our youth academy, and others have Italian ancestors in their families. We are in favor of the solution proposed by UEFA, the gradual insertion of young academy players into the first team squad, and the common job done by football as a whole to protect academies. Looking at the results, Inter's Youth Academy is definitely formative and competitive. With Inter Campus we operate both in Italy and abroad; in recent seasons we have won youth sector titles and we're one of the big European clubs that has given first-team debuts to more youngsters - youngsters who have stayed with us, like Martins, or who are playing for other teams in the Serie A, B and C, or abroad.

"This shows that we have dedicated ourselves seriously and with professionalism to young players, with a project that is in line with our everyday reality, also outside of