Inter coach Antonio Conte spoke to gathered reporters at a press conference today, ahead of tomorrow’s league clash against Cagliari. Italian media outlet FcInterNews noted his words.
“We face a great team, as evidenced by the league campaign they’re having and the roster of players they have. They have a very well-trained coach. They’re a strong team that’s doing very well.”
He spoke about whether the Nerazzurri need to learn how to defend a goal lead or not during a game.
“Our idea is always to attack, even when we’ve scored the first goal. If we hadn’t had this idea, we might not have conceded a counterattack in Florence but that’s what we want to do and it’s right to do it. You don’t have to speculate, you have to try to get the most out of it and when you score a goal you’re not just defending it but scoring another one.”
The 50-year-old Italian revealed if he was satisfied with the Nerazzurri’s transfer market.
“I always said that if someone arrived it was to replace those who left and that it would be a balanced operation. Lazaro left on loan, Moses came on loan. Given Asamoah’s problems, we decided to focus on Young’s experience because we want a prompt response. I read about players leaving, if money comes in, I think it will be invested, otherwise it won’t. We’re not doing anything in particular. We’re trying to improve the squad with ideas and if money comes in, we’ll make investments. The director was very clear: if two come in, two go out, three come in, three go out. It’s math. We’re keeping our feet on the ground because there are players who haven’t played for a while. We must not lose sight of reality, it will take time to put them back in place.”
The former Chelsea and Juventus coach spoke about the importance of earning points against Cagliari after dropping points against Lecce last weekend.
“Already the fact that we consider a draw against Lecce as a negative means we’ve taken a step forward compared to the past. We need to remain level, very humble and accept the Lecce result in the right way. I repeat, we are on a path. Some people still don’t want to understand that but having acquired this credibility it means having done something important in six months. Even our fans have to understand that we’re on a path. We’ve only lost one game in the league since the beginning of the year. We can’t lose sight of reality, we have to appreciate what comes along, with maximum sacrifice and giving everything we can. Sometimes, even giving everything, draws can happen. We’re at peace.”
Conte discussed whether or not he would change the club’s tactical system with the new arrivals.
“The team has no experience, no ingredients that allow you to take your foot off the pedal and still win. We have to keep the pedal held down. For now, we’ve acquired Young to make up for a major injury to Asamoah and we signed Moses on loan because Lazaro left. What we are trying to do is to reinforce various departments that for various reasons need to be reinforced. I don’t know if we’ll succeed with this strategy of taking very experienced players but it’s always right to focus clearly. The messages you send are not clear, it seems like we’ve signed half of Real Madrid. I wouldn’t change my tactics considering that things are going well. We just need to work even harder to improve. I’m very relaxed, the other things are just smoke.”
The 50-year-old Italian touched on whether or not the squad were upset about the growing rift with Juventus in the league table.
“We have to look at ourselves, think about getting better at what we’re doing. We must not look at others. We think about ourselves, about working like we have been and improving by continuing with this enthusiasm.”
He highlighted how he may be forced to deploy new arrival Ashley Young in tomorrow’s game.
“We’re in an emergency, without Candreva because he is suspended and with Lazaro leaving. Decisions will have to be made.”
The Puglian coach discussed how all the players the Nerazzurri have signed so far have come from Premier League clubs.
“Maybe Ausilio and Marotta are big fans of the Premier League and prefer that kind of market.”
He refused to talk about Matias Vecino.
“He’s not available for tomorrow’s game, I’m not talking about other things.”
Finally, Conte spoke about the team’s slow start to 2020.
“The matter is simple, we have to play 100% in every game. I know very well that we can’t do it because it’s unthinkable all year round. When it happens, as is normal, it could be that we run into a draw and I don’t even want to talk about a possible defeat because it doesn’t make me happy.”
