Inter coach Simone Inzaghi will have some major questions regarding the strength of the team at the wingback position based on what he’s seen in preseason so far.
This according to today’s print edition of Turin-based newspaper Tuttosport, who argue that the form of Denzel Dumfries and the injury struggles of Robin Gosens raise doubts about how easy it will be for the Nerazzurri to move on from Ivan Perisic in the wide areas.
Inzaghi’s situation is heavily reliant on quality in wide areas, and last season it had been Perisic on the left, and then Dumfries and Matteo Darmian on the right, who guaranteed this aspect of play.
Now with Perisic gone, Gosens will be expected to maintain the standard on the left flank, and whilst the German international has the proven quality to do so, more minor muscle problems in preseason have not inspired confidence regarding how consistently he can show his best form.
Meanwhile, Dumfries was a player who played his way into the Nerazzurri shirt after a tentative start to last season and became important to Inzaghi’s football, but there could still be questions of consistency which are only exacerbated by his start to preseason.
Elsewhere in the squad are the experienced Darmian and the promising Raoul Bellanova, but getting the wingback positions back to where they were for much last season may not be a completely straightforward task for Inzaghi with the players he has available.