This season’s Inter squad is more Italian than the squads of recent seasons, according to a report from today’s paper edition of the Rome based newspaper Corriere dello Sport.
Italian’s are regularly receiving play time with the Nerazzurri this season, the report highlights, touching on players like Stefano Sensi, Nicolo Barella, Antonio Candreva, Danilo D’Ambrosio, Roberto Gagliardini, Cristiano Biraghi, Matteo Politano, Andrea Ranocchia and Sebastiano Esposito.
Due to Conte’s ability to rotate the squad despite the reduced strength thanks to injuries, the average amount of Italians in the starting eleven is around four per game, much higher than previous seasons.
Last season, the average amount of Italian players in the starting eleven was around two, the report adds, with some games not even having a single Italian in the team. The two seasons prior to that, 2016/17 and 2017/18, the average was around three, while in 2015/16 the average was just one. This shows how the Nerazzurri and Conte have been looking inwards in Italy rather than focusing only on foreign talents.
Furthermore, this number could become even higher, the report suggests. If Inter CEO Beppe Marotta and sporting director Piero Ausilio continue to look at talented Italians in the upcoming January transfer window such as Sandro Tonali and Gaetano Castrovilli, then the average could be raised even more.
