Inter defender Milan Skriniar is happy with the state of the Nerazzurri project and the start that the team have made to the season, and believes that the club are heading in the right direction.
Speaking to Slovak news outlet Sport Aktuality, the 29-year-old reflected on the start made to the season by the Nerazzurri and on the shape of the team after a summer of upheaval.
The Nerazzurri’s summer was a difficult one, seeing the departures of Achraf Hakimi and Romelu Lukaku who were sold to Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea respectively, but the majority of the strong core of players from last season’s Scudetto triumph remain at the club.
Moreover, the new arrivals brought in to replace Hakimi and Lukaku have made an instant impact, and former Lazio coach Simone Inzaghi looks more than able as a replacement for the departed Antonio Conte.
The Nerazzurri have made a very positive start to the season with morale-boosting victories against Genoa and Verona giving supporters something to cheer for after a tough summer transfer window.
“We are just happy,” Skriniar said of Inter’s quick start. “We won both games, it’s fantastic. Already during the preseason, which went quite well for us too, we imagined the start of the season exactly like this.”
Skriniar scored the Nerazzurri’s first goal of the season, a header from a Hakan Calhanoglu corner, and he is pleased to have done so.
“We tried a corner kick scheme that we had already prepared in training,” he explained. “The day before we tried it, and then we replicated it during the match.”
He went on, “I’m very happy to have been there. In the end I scored the first goal in front of the fans at San Siro. The important thing is that this kicked off the victory, because we scored another goal very quickly.”
On the pressure of defending the Scudetto, he said that “We don’t feel any pressure. We started well, but we know it will be difficult. We have a good team, but we certainly won’t make grand claims. We need to unlock all the matches and see how it ends.”
Regarding the difficult summer market for the club, Skriniar explained, “The club officials have told us that they certainly do not want to dismantle the team. The guys who left, Romelu Lukaku and Achraf Hakimi, received good offers and decided to make the change. Quality players came in to replace them.”
“Romelu has been with us in the locker room since the beginning of the retreat,” he said of Lukaku’s move to Chelsea, “so we knew he would most likely go away.”
“On the other hand, another striker arrived, Dzeko, plus we brought in Correa. Lukaku will certainly be missed, but I repeat, the quality has arrived,” he continued.
Skriniar spoke highly of new manager Inzaghi, stating that the former Lazio boss is “Really good. He’s a quality coach and he’s very approachable, which I like about him. Everything works between him and the other staff members.”
The Slovak defender closed with a few words about stricken teammate Christian Eriksen, stating “He came to the locker room and told us how he experienced everything. He is fine and wants to return, but as there are still doubts, we understand that he wants to take a break. But the important thing is that he is well.”
