Inter Milan coach Simone Inzaghi knows that Roma will be a tough opponent for the Nerazzurri, including striker Romelu Lukaku.
The coach spoke to Italian broadcaster SportItalia, via FCInterNews, after the Nerazzurri’s Champions League win over Red Bull Salzburg.
Inter are just a few days away from their first league meeting with Roma of the season.
Clashes between the Nerazzurri and the Giallorossi are always big matches in Italian football.
The two are, after all, among the traditional giants of Serie A. Head-to-head matches tend to have major implications for the top places in the table, for European qualification, and even for the title.
And this time around, there is an extra layer of controversy to the match.
Striker Lukaku will in all likelihood start for the Giallorossi.
Lukaku joined Roma on loan from Chelsea during the summer transfer window. This followed a soap opera that saw him fall out with Inter.
The Nerazzurri had looked to be on the verge of signing the Belgian from Chelsea.
But then the revelation of Lukaku’s negotiation with Juventus caused Inter to angrily pull the plug on the signing, according to reports.
There were also reports that the 30-year-old refused to answer phone calls from Inter directors and former teammates.
This means that there appears to now exist some serious bad blood between Lukaku and Inter. And there is no doubt that the Belgian striker will receive a negative reaction from the Nerazzurri faithful at the San Siro.
Inter Coach Simone Inzaghi On Roma & Romelu Lukaku
Inter coach Inzaghi gave his thoughts ahead of next Sunday’s match.
“It will be a difficult match,” he anticipated. “Roma are a great team.”
“From tomorrow we’ll start thinking about it,” the coach said.
He made clear that “It will be a difficult match against an organized team, with great players. And among them there is Lukaku.”
Inzaghi also gave his thoughts on yesterday’s Champions League victory over Salzburg.
“We knew Salzburg’s quality, we clearly conceded a goal at a moment when they weren’t getting a sniff.
“We had to defend better in that moment, but the team stayed on track, continued to play our game, and we won an important match in terms of our group.”
“There are still three matches to go,” the Inter coach then noted.
“So there’s still a long way to go.”