Hernan Crespo has criticised former club Inter for their handling of the transition from winning the Scudetto last season, as they close in on the sale of striker Romelu Lukaku.
The Nerazzurri have endured a turbulent summer since winning a first league title since 2010, with financial woes seeing coach Antonio Conte depart, before star players Achraf Hakimi and Romelu Lukaku were offloaded to Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea respectively.
In an interview published in today’s newspaper edition of La Gazzetta dello Sport, former striker Crespo admitted that it would be almost impossible to replace Lukaku and that there was significant pressure on new Nerazzurri coach Simone Inzaghi.
“There won’t be a new name coming in like Lukaku because there are few players around like the Belgian, unless they buy Kylian Mbappe, but I don’t think so,” the Sao Paulo coach declared.
“Inter amazed for a season and now they have to start from scratch. Let’s just say that the change of strategy could have been better managed.
“Inter was a battleship, but now Hakimi is gone and Lukaku is gone. Simone Inzaghi will have a hard job, you have to quickly forget your successes and work hard for new goals. The legacy of Conte still weighs heavily.”
Ex-Argentina international Crespo won three Serie A titles with Inter between 2006 and 2009, and offered his thoughts on the Scudetto race this season.
“Juventus are the favourites. They have something more than the others. Watch out for Cristiano Ronaldo’s desire for redemption. If he stayed, it is because he wants to prove that he is still number one.
“Milan could be the surprise. If they manage to climb the last step, to become even more aware of their ability, the Rossoneri can disturb Inter and Juve. They play good football, I follow them with interest.”
Crespo scored 29 goals in 86 appearances for Inter in a distinguished career in Serie A, in which he also represented Parma, Lazio, AC Milan, and Genoa with success, as well as winning the Premier League with Chelsea.
