Inter’s treble-winning hero Lucio sees a little bit of himself in the Nerazzurri’s current defensive general Stefan de Vrij.

Antonio Conte’s side are six points clear at the top of Serie A, with a game in hand over AC Milan in second, following an eight-game winning streak.

Much of Inter’s success can be put down to their remarkable solidity at the back, where De Vrij has formed a near-perfect trio alongside Milan Skriniar and Alessandro Bastoni.

“In our day we built our success on the defence,” Lucio told Gazzetta dello Sport in an interview for Monday’s print edition.

“It wasn’t just us defenders, the entire team managed to help us with a unique sense of solidity.

“Inter’s defence now gives a lot of security too: Skriniar and Bastoni are both modern defenders, but De Vrij is the one who resembles me the most.

“I see myself in him when he marks opponents but also in certain movements with the ball.”

Lucio was asked whether Inter’s current team could be compared to his legendary side from 2009-10, which won everything possible under Jose Mourinho.

The Brazilian was also quizzed on his memories of working under Conte, when he spent six months at Juventus after leaving Inter.

“Inter are physically strong, they have rapid transitions from defence to attack, they’re solid at the back and have that exceptional partnership up front…

“I just hope they have the same successes as us.

“Inter deserve to be top of Serie A: if they keep this consistency to the end of the season, they’re destined to end Juventus’ dominance.

“I don’t have many memories of Conte as a coach though, because I only spent six months with him.

“He was a demanding coach who liked working a lot, and he knew how to focus very well on the physical side of things.

“This aspect is decisive in order to create competitive teams like his.

“How many videos Conte made me watch before and after games…

“He seems like the right person to lead Inter back to winning and to build a solid career in Milan.

“It’s a bit strange seeing him there given his past as a player, but in football it’s results that matter and he’s achieving them.”

On Romelu Lukaku, Lucio said: “He has an incredible physical strength, but he doesn’t just use it for himself, he uses it for others too.

“Lukaku scores and he’s generous as well: he reminds me a lot of Didier Drogba and even a bit of Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

“It’s difficult to mark him because he pins all the defenders.

“If you try to beat him physically you’re dead: the only way is to stay focused on the body to body and try and nick the ball off him with good timing.”

Lucio also shared his favourite memory from his four-year spell at Inter, albeit he was asked to choose something other than winning the treble.

“The start, the first few days, because our success was born there,” he recalled.

“There was a special atmosphere.

“A thought always goes to Mourinho: he gave me a unique sense of confidence and really got into my head.”

Lucio made 136 appearances in all competitions for Inter, scoring five goals.