Roberto Mancini has called in a lawyer after Inter Milan claimed he was axed for announcing he would quit after the Champions League loss to Liverpool.
Mancini changed his mind the day after the last 16 defeat in March.
Lawyer Stefano Gagliardi said it was too late for Inter to use this as a justification for sacking him.
Gagliardi said: "We abide by the national contract for coaches which says that a club has 10 days from an alleged breach to take action."
"He feels injured as a person and troubled"
Gagliardi told the ANSA news agency: "Any event referred to in the statement happened months ago."
Inter's statement also mentioned "events that emerged recently in the news".
Gagliardi said this was a reference to wiretaps published in the press from a drugs probe involving a person known to Mancini and some players, even though there was never any suggestion anyone at Inter had done anything wrong.
Mancini said in a statement that he had taken legal action against these reports that had "offended my honour and reputation".
He also criticised the club for bringing them into his dismissal, saying: "I have given my lawyer the job of protecting my image, while condemning the behaviour of the employer club in that it tried to exploit false, illicit stories."
606: DEBATE
Gagliardi revealed Mancini was angry at the manner of his departure after leading Inter to a third consecutive Serie A title.
He said: "Mancini is angry and disappointed because he feels injured as a person and troubled. He and his family feel affected by this affair."
Inter are expected by Italian media to appoint former Chelsea and Porto manager Jose Mourinho as coach to replace Mancini.
~RS~q~RS~~RS~z~RS~10~RS~)