Inter head coach Simone Inzaghi has provided an update on the fitness of midfielder Marcelo Brozovic, who he is hoping can already be back in action for Saturday’s Serie A opener against Lecce.
Speaking to InterTV following the Nerazzurri’s 4-2 friendly loss to Villarreal, the coach explained that whilst the 29-year-old missed out through a muscle problem, the hope is that he can already be back to face Lecce.
Brozovic picked up a calf problem and it was decided not to take any risks with the Croat’s fitness in this evening’s match, Inter’s final official friendly match before the season kicks off next weekend.
The 29-year-old is a vital player for the Nerazzurri and fans won’t want to see him miss too much action even though a deputy has been signed for him in the form of Kristjan Asllani, who started against Villarreal.
Based on Inzaghi’s words, there shouldn’t be too much worry about Brozovic’s fitness, although it remains to be seen if he’ll be ready in time to face Lecce on the first day of the season.
Speaking about the match, the coach said that “We did a good job, Skriniar started for the first time after his preparations, Brozovic was out with a minor problem but we hope that he’ll be back for Saturday.”
“Tonight we were good in the possession phase, and now we’re getting closer and closer to Saturday in which we hope to make our season debut in the best way possible,” he continued.
Of the 4-2 loss, the coach said that “We knew that this would be a difficult match. We showed many positive things, but we have to do better in the defensive phase.”
“They reached our penalty area five times and scored four goals,” he continued, “this is something for us to analyze. We were playing against a team that reached the semi-final of the Champions League and were ahead of us in their preparations, we still have work to do.”
“It was a demanding match like the others we’ve played,” Inzaghi went on. “We feel that we’re in good condition but that we still have work to do.”
