Inter wing-back Denzel Dumfries is glad to have found his best form since joining the Nerazzurri in the summer, but he wants to keep going and improving.
Speaking to Milan-based newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport in an interview published in today’s print edition, the Dutchman also stated his desire to live up to legendary Nerazzurri right-back Maicon’s legacy in the shirt.
Dumfries didn’t immediately hit the ground running at Inter, showing flashes of his best but not always consistent form over the first few months of the campaign after joining from PSV in the summer.
However, the 25-year-old has always been working in training to get fully settled in and learn the role of wing-back in Simone Inzaghi’s system so that he can become a key player to the team.
Since an injury to Matteo Darmian that caused Inzaghi to put his trust in Dumfries in December onwards, the Dutchman has repaid the coach’s faith with a sequence of high-level displays.
“The past few months have been fun but also intense for me,” he said. “For me it was really all new, but from the beginning I tried to understand as quickly as possible what this great club is all about and gain an appreciation of the best parts of being here.”
“I talk to the staff,” he went on, “I know my teammates, but above all I listen. I listen and learn.”
Of the late VAR penalty he conceded in a draw against Juventus, the wing-back admitted that “It was my most difficult moment.”
“It felt like the world fell on me,” he went on, “being involved in that incidents in one of the most important matches of the year.”
“But the next day I received the support of the club and tried to regain my balance mentally,” he continued.
“The week after, away to Empoli. D’Ambrosio scored and ran over to hug me,” he recalled. “That had never happened to me, it was a positive surprise, I was really emotional. I understood that everyone was behind me.”
On his upturn in form, Dumfries explained that “My goal against Roma gave me confidence, it was the turning point, but I must also mention winning the Supercoppa which this team hasn’t won in a while.”
“I won’t forget my first great trophy,” he said, “with that incredible atmosphere.”
On the pressure of replacing Achraf Hakimi, the Dutchman stated that “Everyone saw how much he left his mark on the wing-back role with how fantastic a player he is.”
“But, with all due respect, I don’t like to talk about filling his legacy,” he continued. “I don’t feel like someone who has taken the place of another, because players change clubs all the time in the transfer market.”
“Now is my time and I will work hard to be up to the task,” Dumfries emphasized.
“At Inter there have been incredible players on the right side,” he continued, “the first that comes to mind is Maicon – he’s a benchmark, and I’d like to get as close as I can to reaching his level.”
On the most impressive quality of coach Simone Inzaghi, the Dutchman named “His determination, the passion that he shows through matches, it’s something I’ve never seen before.”
“He gets ‘inside’ the match,” Dumfires added of his coach, “he plays it, it is as if he’s on the pitch with us. We see that he’s always guiding us, he’s someone who knows how to connect people – it stays with you.”
On the progress of his Italian lessons, the Dutchman stated that “I actually stopped classes due to the birth of my daughter, but now I’m getting back into it. ”
“Meanwhile, I listen, I read, I try to catch anything I can,” he continued. “The words I know most are ‘man’ and ‘slip,’ I need them to survive on the pitch.””
“Amd of course I know what the Scudetto means,” he added. “We don’t mind being considered favourites, it’s a good feeling, but the most important thing is that we stay focused on our objective.”
On his anticipation of Saturday’s Milan derby, Dumfries reflected that “It’s a special match, we watched it in Holland even.”
“I remember Stefan’s goal in the comeback two years ago,” he went on. “In the first one this season, even from the bench, there was a crazy atmosphere, a sense of electricity unlike anything else.”
“However, I don’t prepare for it differently,” he added. “I always try to stay at my best, regardless of the match.”
And on a memorable moment from his time at Inter so far, Dumfries recalled that “I can mention a particular incident – on a day off I went to Appiano for physiotherapy.”
“I thought I was alone and instead I saw 12-13 of my teammates there. I was amazed: in Holland that doesn’t happen, rest is rest,” he explained. “But it made me understand how committed and professional every there.”
