Inter head coach Simone Inzaghi has worked on getting the team’s possession game back to its best, and the tactical work is paying off.
This according to today’s print edition of Milan-based newspaper Gazzeta dello Sport, who highlight how the team is looking much more fluid in possession as of their win over Hellas Verona on Saturday.
Inter had struggled to play through pressure and sustain the kind of balance in possession that would allow them to mount dangerous attacks in their Serie A draws against Torino and Fiorentina.
This was an obvious problem, and could partly be accounted for by the absence of Marcelo Brozovic through injury, but also was a consequence of a lack of positional cohesion among the players.
In the Nerazzurri’s first match back from the international break, they needed a gritty backs-to-the-wall display to take three points away to Juventus.
However, their second match back, against Hellas Verona, was always likely to be an important test.
Like Torino and Fiorentina, the Gialloblu play an intense and physical style of football based around trying to disrupt the rhythm of an opponent in possession.
Despite the proficiency of Igor Tudor’s team at doing just that, considering that the Gialloblu have picked up wins against the likes of Juventus and Roma this campaign and drawn with Napoli, Inter did not look phased.
The Nerazzurri dictated the tempo from the first minute, regularly finding a route to the opposition penalty area and conceding just one shot in the first half.
The Gazzetta notes how this was down to the Nerazzurri’s ability to get players closer together on the pitch and specifically closer to the ball.
Edin Dzeko and Joaquin Correa each showed good chemistry in linking up both which each other and with the midfield, and Hakan Calhanoglu was involved from the buildup phase to the final third.
Perhaps the clearest evidence that the approach was working was in the role played by Federico Dimarco, who had an important job interpreting his position to always provide a short-passing option in buildup.
In the end, Inter cruised to a 2-0 win in a fixture which could have been tricky, and their tight passing triangles made it look straightforward.
