Inter defender Milan Skriniar touched on the Slovakian national team and his experiences at Inter in an interview in yesterday’s print edition of the Slovakian magazine HatTrick.
“We all know that the sums have increased very quickly in football, probably in a disproportionate manner. After all, about five years ago, no defender was paid €60 million. Now it’s almost normal, the defensive players are sold for €80 million. I think that someone will surely outdo me soon, because I want the young players to be able to grow in Slovakia too. Obviously, it will be fine for me if my price increases and if I have to remain such a popular player. But I have to prove it on the field by growing again, because I’m only twenty-four years old. In that case, my price will continue to rise.”
The Slovakian defender then touched on the importance of Inter’s next Champions League game against Slavia Prague on Tuesday.
“Personally, I was happy with the round, because we play football mainly to play against the best and in this group, we have played well despite having both Borussia Dortmund and Barcelona, which have been at the forefront for years with great performances. I couldn’t wait to play these games and I’m still looking forward to it, despite the fact that we drew with Slavia Prague at the start and then lost in Barcelona. Perhaps it would have been easier without noble teams, but even teams like Zenit St. Petersburg, Shakhtar Donetsk or Slavia Prague have a certain quality, as the Czechs showed us in September. Yet you want to play in the biggest stadiums and against the best and most famous rivals like Barcelona and Dortmund.”
Skriniar then praised the Czech club further.
“They played a really fantastic game in Milan. We didn’t underestimate them, because they’re Czech champions and we prepared for them as we do with any opponent. We were surprised above all by their movement, they ran in an incredible way. They also played well against the other two teams, but that’s how football goes, sometimes it’s fine, sometimes it’s not. We didn’t do well against Slavia, but I don’t want to underestimate their performance. It’s particularly difficult to play against a team that runs, attacks and is tireless. Everyone was surprised by the way Slavia managed to keep Barcelona under pressure too.”
The Nerazzurri centre back touched on how it felt to play at the Camp Nou and Westfalenstadion.
“I like it when the stadiums are full, the fans cheer, scream and create a wonderful atmosphere. It’s no mistake to say that fans are the twelfth man on the pitch. And that’s especially true in Dortmund, with their yellow wall. Every player wants to play in a similar atmosphere.”
Finally, Skriniar was hopeful about Inter’s chances of qualifying for the next round of the competition.
“I know it’s going to be difficult, but I think we’ll get to the round of 16. And if I have to guess the ranking, I say first Barcelona, then Inter second, then BVB and Slavia. I believe in qualifying, it’s what we all want in the locker room and that’s our goal.”