Samuele Dalla Bona watched both Maurizio Sarri and Antonio Conte closely at former club Chelsea and he believes that the new Inter boss will come out on top as the duo prepare to do battle in Serie A next season.
Sarri was unveiled as Juventus head coach to the Turin media on Thursday having left the Blues following a single season in charge at Stamford Bridge in which he won the Europa League and led the club to a third-placed finish in the Premier League.
His predecessor Conte, meanwhile, spent a year out of the game as he worked through legal proceedings with Chelsea following his departure, but will now make his return with Inter.
The Nerazzurri finished fourth last season, a full 21 points behind Scudetto winners Juventus, who in turn secured their eighth successive league title.
Sarri's job is to make it nine in a row, but Dalla Bona believes that he will struggle to compete with Conte, who in turn he was surprised to see overlooked as the Bianconeri sought to replace Massimiliano Allegri.
"In Chelsea, Sarri had a decent season, it was neither good nor bad. I see Chelsea as a big team and they could have done better," Dalla Bona told Goal .
"I don’t know why Juventus took Sarri. Honestly, I am a little bit surprised about this.
"He won the Europa League but he had a good team in Chelsea. I don’t really like his style of football. I think after February he changed a bit. I didn’t think he played his full Sarriball. When he played Sarriball, he lost 6-0 to Man City.
"He had to change a little bit and they got some good results towards the end. He hasn’t won much and I don’t know if he is the best profile for Juventus. To follow Allegri won’t be easy. Five Scudetto, Coppa Italia, Supercopa. It isn’t an easy job for him.
"I am sure that Conte can beat Sarri’s Juventus to the Serie A title. Maybe not in the first year but he is a winner because he shows that he is a winner. He showed it at Juventus and Chelsea. He had a problem with [Diego] Costa and others but I really like him.
"When he came to Chelsea I was sure he was going to win. Now when he goes to Inter, I am sure they will be a very very strong team. For sure, they won’t finish 20 points behind Juventus. I think he is a better manager than Sarri.
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"I think Conte would have gone back to Juventus but it may be that they didn’t want him for his character. After Allegri, I think it would be better to see Conte back and not Sarri."
At Sarri's unveiling he conceded that managing Cristiano Ronaldo marks a step forward in terms of the players that the 60-year-old coach has worked with previously in his career.
And Dalla Bona does not believe that Ronaldo needs any instructions from his managers to produce the goods, meaning that Sarri will not be able to alter his superstar forward's role to fit his system.
"I think Cristiano Ronaldo can play alone without any advice from anybody," he added. "I went to Juventus Stadium many times, they played short passes with Pjanic. I am not sure if they will change for Sarri."
The Italian is now preparing for a preseason trip in Asia where his side will face Tottenham and Conte's Inter in Singapore and China for the International Champions Cup. They then face Atletico Madrid in Sweden on August 10.
