Inter head coach Simone Inzaghi makes no secret that he would welcome a reunion with defender Francesco Acerbi at the Nerazzurri, but he also feels that there are a lot of factors in play.
Speaking in a press conference after his team’s 3-0 win over Spezia, as reported by FCInterNews, the coach spoke about the reported interest in signing Acerbi, whilst he also praised his team’s performance and expressed the hope that they can keep growing.
Inter have been linked with Acerbi for some time, if often only tenuously, but over the past few days it has looked as though they could decide to finally pull the trigger on their interest in the 34-year-old.
The former Sassuolo defender would be a relatively like-for-like replacement for Andrea Ranocchia as an experience option at the heart of the defense, whilst he has shown that he can work fruitfully with Inzaghi over three seasons together at the Biancocelesti.
Asked if he considers Acerbi to be the right profile, the coach stated “Yes, certainly, but there are dynamics and mechanisms in the transfer market to consider.”
“The directors are dealing with it,” he noted, “they know the characteristics I want. The position will be filled within the next ten days.”
Regarding the fact that defender Milan Skriniar now appears set to stay for the season despite having been linked with a sale, Inzaghi said that “As far as the transfer market is concerned, I’m fortunate to work with great directors who have a lot of experience.”
“They know what my thoughts are and they convey them to the owners, they know what I want,” he explained.
Asked about the possibility that Inter could be stronger this season than last with the addition of Romelu Lukaku and other signings, the coach said that “That’s what we hope, we’ll see what happens on the pitch.”
“We kept the team the same as it was last season, we brought in players who fill important roles, and Lukaku returned,” he noted. “We’re working to improve, and sometimes I’ll have to make my choices with the team.”
He noted that “Over the first two matches of the season the five substitutions were positive.”
Of the form of Lukaku, Inzaghi said that “He’s doing well, as are the whole team. We knew that the friendlies against French teams were very early, we wanted them to be tough. And then on August 13, I think we arrived at our best.”
Looking ahead, the coach said that “We know that now we have some very demanding matches ahead of us in the schedule, but the team have looked very strong to me on the pitch. We’ve worked well, I’m satisfied because we showed total concentration this evening.”
And regarding the fact that he has four starting-quality forwards in his squad, Inzaghi stated that “I think I have strikers who are all capable of playing alongside each other, in Lecce they were all on the pitch together.”
