Inter Milan coach Simone Inzaghi has made clear the team’s Serie A title ambitions, and also the importance of bringing back Romelu Lukaku.
Speaking in the Nerazzurr’s preseason press conference, as reported by FCInterNews, the coach outlined the ambitions for the upcoming season.
Inter are still more than a month away from their Serie A season kicking off against Monza at the San Siro.
However, that time will certainly fly by. And the preparations for the upcoming campaign are well underway.
The team will assemble for preseason training starting tomorrow. And then, later this month, it will be time for the Nerazzurri’s preseason tour of Japan.
And then there is the matter of the transfer market. So far, Inter have signed Davide Frattesi, Marcus Thuram, and look poised to sign Yann Biseck.
More players on the way, however – both in and out. Bringing Romelu Lukaku back from Chelsea is still a priority, as Inzaghi makes clear.
Marcelo Brozovic and Milan Skriniar have gone, among others. And Andre Onana should almost certainly soon follow them.
Simone Inzaghi: Inter Milan Aiming For Serie A Title Next Season
Once Inter get their summer preparations done with, Inzaghi isn’t hiding what their ambitions are.
The coach wants the Nerazzurri to have a run at the Serie A title, something they were truthfully never close to last season as Napoli won the Scudetto at a canter.
Inzaghi made very clear that “Winning is a part of Inter’s DNA. A lot of teams will want to win it, though I don’t want to guess who the favourites are.”
“We’re Inter and we have to try to win the second star,” he continued. “We’ll put everything we have into it, starting tomorrow we already know what our big goal is.”
And asked if he’d rather win the league, or play in another Champions League final, Inzaghi replied that “That’s a difficult question. Last season we had an incredible season despite not winning it.”
“I embraced all my players after the final in Istanbul. I wanted to do the same with the fans.”
“It was an incredible atmosphere, even in defeat,” Inzaghi looked back on Inter’s loss to Manchester City.
Inter Hungry Ahead Of 2023-24 Season
As far as what kind of mood surrounds the team ahead of next season, Inzaghi said that “Everyone is hungry. We had a long, intense, and exciting season, there were 57 matches and we also won trophies.”
“There were also difficult moments, but we did well to put them behind us.”
“We’re starting again with great desire,” Inzaghi made clear. “It will be another intense season, and hopefully we’ll give plenty of satisfaction to our fans, who have already bought up all the season tickets.”
Asked if he thinks he can build a winning cycle at Inter, Inzaghi replied that “It’s been years since a coach stayed at Inter for more than three seasons.”
“But there’s a lot for us to be proud of, thanks to the players, and thanks to the club.”
“Every season we start with big challenges ahead of us,” Inzaghi replied. “So far our journey in cup competitions has been perfect. In two years we’ve lost against Liverpool, and then against Manchester City in Istanbul.”
“In the league we finished second and then third, in that respect we can do better.”
Inzaghi Happy With Summer Transfer Window So Far
As far as the team’s summer transfer window to date, Inzaghi said that “I’m in complete harmony with the directors and the President.
“Work is now underway. It’s never easy in the transfer market, but the signings we’ve already made are proof of our work, we’ve already brought in Frattesi, Thuram, Bisseck who played in the Under-21 Euros.”
“Di Gennaro is also back.”
As for Lukaku, Inzaghi said that “We know what he represents for us, how important he is. Look what he did in the second half of last season.”
“We’ve fight to bring him back,” the coach said of Lukaku. “Though right now, he plays for another club.”
As for the percentage of his squad that he wants to have for the preseason tour of Japan, Inzaghi said that “It would be good to have as many as possible.”
“There are still a few days to go before then, but the first phase of preseason training is also important.”
“The transfer market is unpredictable,” Inzaghi reflected. “Maybe in ten days some players won’t be here any more, and others will arrive.”
“The market being open doesn’t do us any favours, but we’re used to it.”
Inzaghi Feels UCL Final Showed Inter Milan At The Same Level As Anyone In Europe
As for the Champions League final against Manchester City, Inzaghi said that “We showed in the final that there wasn’t much to split the teams. We played on level terms.”
“We lost it, we were very sorry for that,” he added. “But we kept up with them punch for punch.”
Asked if he expects the departure of Marcelo Brozovic to be a problem for Inter, Inzaghi replied that “I think we should also talk about a lot of players who’ve left after writing part of this club’s history.”
He named “Handanovic, Bellanova, Brozovic, D’Ambrosio, Dzeko, Gagliardini, Skriniar. They all did very well.”
“We made the decision to rejuvenate the squad. The players we’ve lost will remain in the club’s history, but the players who come in their place will do just as well.”
Asked if he plans to rotate the squad as much as last season, Inzaghi replied that “Without the World Cup we’ll only have the midweek round to think about. But we still have all the cup competitions, and so I’ll need everyone available.”
“Last year from the start of April through the two months that brought us to Istanbul, everyone contributed.”
“We hope to have everyone available, because we always achieve better results when everyone is fit,” Inzaghi made clear.
Of the fact that his contract expires at the end of next June, Inzaghi said that “I’ve spoken with the club about it, the club know my thoughts. Now I’m focused on the pitch, the President knows how I feel.”
Asked if Lautaro Martinez will be captain next season, Inzaghi said that “Before I communicate the decision to you, I’ll talk about it with the squad.”
And of the influx of Saudi Pro League spending in Europe, Inzaghi said that “We have to be careful about the Arab market. A lot of money is arriving, and that makes it hard to keep hold of players.”
Inzaghi Effusive On Onana Transfer Rumours
The Inter coach also weighed in on the situations of Onana and Lukaku.
“Let’s make clear that Onana is an Inter player, we’ll call him up,” he said.
“The transfer market is unpredictable, and all Italian teams have to sell before buying, but I’m sure we will have a competitive Inter,” he continued. “They assured me of that. There’s been a lot of talk about it in our meetings. We know that this is modern football.”
“It’s important for Inter to be competitive, knowing that we’ve had problems after COVID but have had intelligent transfer windows.”
Of heading into next season, Inzaghi said that “It’s very important to start well, better than last year when we didn’t get off to a very good start.”
“I don’t pay too much attention to the fixture list. Last season we should have had the last two months be the toughest, but instead we were the second best team in the league after Napoli.”
“This time around, we have an easy start on paper, but all matches can surprise you.”
Asked if he feels that he has gotten back at his critics with the performances last season, Inzaghi replied “No, I only think about the pitch, about my work.”
“I try to do my best for my club, and what I’ve done at Lazio and Inter is proof of that.”
“Every coach has his own path, I’ve enjoyed great times at both of these clubs, and with these fans.”
“I know it’s my third year, it’s been 13-14 years since a coach has stayed at Inter for this long, and that means that my staff and I have deserved it with the results on the pitch.”
Inzaghi Says He Still Backs Joaquin Correa
Asked if he still believes in forward Joaquin Correa despit the Argentine’s underwhelming form, Inzaghi replied “Absolutely, yes. The players I coach are the best in the world, for me.”
“We’re talking about an excellent player who hasn’t performed as expected,” he said of Correa. “But we have full confidence in him. He can do better.”
“I’ve already coached him [at Lazio] and I know what he can give us.”
Asked who he expects to be Inter’s biggest rivals at the top of the table, Inzaghi replied “Our hope is to start over from zero, it’s hard to make predictions.”
“Napoli had an extraordinary journey last season, but like so many teams they’ve changed coach,” he added. “We want to compete and win the second star, the fans are all pushing for it, we hope to be able to give them what they want.”
Asked if he’d have liked to bring Sergej Milinkovic-Savic to Inter, Inzaghi replied that “I won’t go into personal choices, everyone makes their own assessments.”
“Milinkovic-Savic is a player of great quality, technique, and physicality,” he continued. He called the 28-year-old “A great player, he made a choice but he is young and can stil return to Europe later.”
Milinkovic-Savic looks to be on the verge of leaving Lazio to join Al-Hilal.
Inzaghi On What Inter Milan Squad Still Lacking
The Inter coach also gave his thoughts on what the team needs to add to the squad for next season.
“We know that we have some boxes to fill in teh squad,” Inzaghi said. “Everyone at the club is on the same page, we know what we have to do as with last season.”
The coach identified a need for “Twenty outfield players, plus three goalkeepers and three youngsters who are part of the senior team.”
“We’re missing a trequartista, Calhanoglu will be a deep-lying player as well Asllani. “Then we also need to add a right-wingback. We have to reinforce the defense with another signing, the same with midfield, and we have to sign another striker.”
As for what kind of player he wants to sign if the Nerazzurri have to replace Andre Onana, Inzaghi said that “He’ll have to be technically good.”
“We ‘re looking for more than one goalkeeper,” he added.
“Over the last two seasons, first with Handanovic and then with Onana, we’ve had keepers who’ve been good with their feet. So we’ll need to have that again.”
As for what he wants from the Primavera team, Inzaghi replied that “Carboni will be part of our preseason retreat.”
“Last year he made his debut, in a year playing with the senior team he’s grown a lot, and he’ll be part of the team.”
Inzaghi also noted that “Zanotti also played last year, now he’s gone on loan. We’ll also give a chance to Esposito, and then some other youngsters can try and prove themselves.”
Inzaghi Believes Barella & Frattesi Can Play Together
Of the midfield dynamic with existing Inter midfielder Nicolo Barella and new signing Davide Frattesi, Inzaghi said that “Frattesi and Barella can play together. They’ve proved with the national team.”
“When I’ve made substitutions during matches, [Barella] has played on the left without a problem. They can absolutely play together.”
And of new striker Marcus Thuram, Inzaghi said that “He’s very physically impressive. He’s come off the back of an excellent spell at Gladbach, and he’s a top-class player.”
And finally, Inzaghi also backed Robin Gosens to make an important contribution next season.
“He finished last season well, he alternated with Dimarco and did very well in the role,” he said of the German.
“And then, I can’t say what the transfer market will bring from now until the end of the summer. But I know that I can count on everyone.”
