Inter coach Simone Inzaghi is glad to see midfielder Hakan Calhanoglu beginning to show his best in an Inter shirt after another strong display against Venezia yesterday evening.
Speaking to InterTV after the match, the coach gave his reaction to the performance and particularly singled out the 27-year-old for praise after his display and goal.
Much was expected from Calhanoglu when the Turkish midfielder arrived on a free transfer from city rivals AC Milan over the summer.
The midfielder has started more often than not, but at times he has come in for criticism for not impacting matches enough after a very encouraging debut against Genoa at the start of the season.
However, in the last few matches he has showed the impact that he can make, with his opening goal crucial to the win yesterday after decisive displays in huge fixtures for the club’s Serie A and Champions League ambitions.
“I asked the team to play with character,” Inzaghi said after the match yesterday, “we knew we were playing against an organized team who play excellent football.”
He went on that “The guys did well to prevent Venezia from getting into the box. This was a great win that closes off a great week for us.”
“It was the third game in six days,” the coach added, “there was a bit of tiredness, but the guys did well. We prepared for this away match with only a few hours, but I asked for great concentration because it could have been a stumbling block.”
“I think we are all in an excellent moment of form,” Inzaghi said, “for Calha this was his third match in a week.”
“He is in a great moment of form,” the coach added of the Turk, “and helped us to unlock a difficult match.”
The coach also looked ahead to the next match, against Spezia on Wednesday, stating that “We will prepare for that match as we also do, we will need to be organized because Spezia are also a team with quality.”