ROBERTO CARLOS: INTER DEAL WAS SO CLOSE

The Brazilian superstar, who told planetfootball on Monday that he quit Inter because of then coach Roy Hodgson's lack of footballing knowledge, thought that he was set for a return to Milan this season.

"Last summer I was very close to returning to Inter," admitted Roberto Carlos to planetfootball. "I don't know why that didn't go ahead in the end.

"I know that Massimo Moratti spoke with Florentino Perez.

"Of course I may leave Real one day," added the pacey star when asked if he would depart Spain for Italy.

"And yes I would play for Inter again. The Italian league is the Italian league, you never say never and I am still a big fan of Inter."

Roberto Carlos, however, would not rule out a move to another top Italian side.

"I would also go to Juventus," he admitted. "And Capello has never asked me to join him at Roma, but I do like the club and was very happy when they won the Scudetto.

"I have a lot of friends at Roma - Emerson, Zago, Aldair and Cafu."

He also tried to explain the strange fluctuations in form that have seen Real excel in the Champions League but not yet fire on all cylinders domestically.

"In the Champions League nobody arrives with the intention of defending against Real," he explained. "In the Champions League you have to gain points whereas in La Liga somebody would be delighted to get a single point.

"Last season we picked up the title which has made us hungry to move on and win the Champions League, but I don't think this is causing the problem."

The summer saw the world transfer record shattered to bring Zinedine Zidane from Juventus to Real, and Roberto Carlos believes that this will lift the club to greater heights.

"Last season saw the arrival of Luis Figo and we won the league after so many seasons. Now we have got Zidane and that means we have even more experience and talent.

"It means we should do even better than we did last year.

"Last season was definitely the best of my career so far.

The multitude of world class stars at Real does not awe the Brazilian, who interestingly names Middlesbrough's Paul Ince, a former team-mate at Inter, amongst the greatest players he has performed with.

"I have always been surrounded with wonderful players - Rivaldo, Dunga, Romario Ronaldo and these are only the players from the national team. I could include Ince and so on.

"I have to say that I am very lucky to have played alongside such names as this."

Finally the diminutive wing-back talks of the troubled situation with the Brazilian national squad, but insists that they are still a force that could win the World Cup.

"We don't play well in the qualifiers because everybody wants to play against Argentina, Germany, France, Italy - the other games we don't enjoy so much.

"I'm not afraid that we won't get to the World Cup in 2002."

The Brazilian also believes that the decision to sack Wanderley Luxemburgo was ill-judged, citing the fact that players had to travel long distances and were not at the peak of their game.

"It was the wrong thing to do," says the Samba star. "We were arriving from Europe and had no time to prepare.

"With him we all knew what to do, but now we have to begin from square one again which is never easy."

After Luxemburgo's departure, Leao was appointed for a brief spell - but it proved to be one of the most acrimonious in the Selecao's history, and Roberto Carlos explains why he only played once.

"You have to remember that this was a time in Brazil when people began to whistle and boo Rivaldo.

"They said that I was not playing with heart and that we were all too rich and we didn't care about the national team any more.

"If people were prepared to think like this then I began to think that maybe it was better to stay in Madrid where they appreciate me."