Legendary former AC Milan defender Alessandro Costacurta feels that defender Francesco Acerbi is a player who can be completely reliable for Inter coach Simone Inzaghi.
Speaking to Italian broadcaster Sky Sport Italia, Costacurta praised the 34-year-old and suggested that he could particularly be useful given that Stefan de Vrij has been struggling to play his best football on a consistent basis at the heart of the Nerazzurri’s defense.
Acerbi’s debut went about as well as it could have against Viktoria Plzen in the Champions League, with the Lazio-owned defender marshalling the backline well as keeping Plzen striker Tomas Chory quiet to ensure that the Nerazzurri kept a clean sheet.
The 34-year-old is thought to have been signed as a reliable option to replace Andrea Ranocchia and ensure adequate defensive depth, but his performance against Plzen was enough to suggest that he could do more than this, and could even push de Vrij if the Dutchman doesn’t find form.
“It seems to me that Acerbi is a player who Simone Inzaghi can really put his trust in, even alternating with de Vrij,” Costacurta said. “We’ve seen with the Dutchman that he’s been struggling for consistency in his performances.”
