Inter will have a number of factors to consider in deciding upon the future of coach Simone Inzaghi, and there are both pros and cons to look at.
This is the view in today’s print edition of Turin-based newspaper Tuttosport, via FCInterNews, who argue that the trophies that the 46-year-old has won and the fact that sacking him would incur a high cost are the main reasons why the Nerazzurri could decide against parting ways in the summer.
From a sporting perspective, the fact that Inzaghi has won the Supercoppa Italiana twice and the Coppa Italia once already is a point in the coach’s favour, whilst he still has the team fighting for the latter this time around as well, as well as in the quarterfinals of the Champions League.
Meanwhile, there is a good chance that one of Inter owners’ Suning’s primary objections to the possibility of sacking Inzaghi would be the simple fact that relieving the former Lazio coach of duty and appointing a replacement would be a costly endeavour hardly suited to the Nerazzurri’s present financial situation.
Other positives of Inzaghi’s tenure noted by Tuttosport are the fact that he has overseen Hakan Calhanoglu’s emergence as a top-class regista, and that he has been fully vindicated in his insistence that Francesco Acerbi be brought in during the summer.
In terms of negatives that could push Inzaghi out the door this summer, the fact that the team have found themselves miles behind Napoli in the Serie A table and in a difficult scrap for top four is the most glaringly apparent.
Moreover, it is certainly a worry that Inter have in fact taken a step backwards from last season at least in terms of their league form.
Whilst last time around the Nerazzurri were bitterly disappointed to miss out on the title to AC Milan in a race that went down to the final day of the season, they were not losing with anything like the same regularity as this season in the league.
If the 46-year-old’s Inter team are truly regressing in performance, then the club could find that they have little choice but to look for a new coach during the summer.
In terms of his handling of player situations, the fact that Inzaghi has seemingly never trusted Kristjan Asllani to play any significant minutes in midfield is a big question mark given that the club directors made the decision to invest in him and see him as a key piece for the future.
Meanwhile, if Inzaghi’s pushing to bring in Acerbi from his old club Lazio has looked like a masterstroke on the coach’s part, the fact that he was the main sponsor of Joaquin Correa’s arrival from the Biancocelesti is equally a mark against him.
The Argentine has been a costly flop who has repaid little if any of the coach’s enduring faith in him.
For Tuttosport, the balance of these considerations shows that it is not immediately obvious one way or the other whether Inzaghi should remain at the helm of Inter into the future, but one way or the other the club will have much to think about.
