Former Inter striker Christian Vieri has said that if Inter beats AC Milan in the derby on Saturday night, the Rossoneri are out of the Scudetto race, according to a report in the Italian media today.
Speaking during an interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport today, Christian Vieri explained that the 10 point gap that would be created would be too big for Inter to let go of.
“If Inter win, they cut Milan out of the Scudetto race: potential +10, how do you recover that to the leaders we are seeing? To a team that is also proving to be ruthless, when needed?
“Those who say that Inter have already won the championship at the beginning of February: it is early. But this Inter does not lose three or four matches between now and May and precisely because it is like this, they will play to win.”
Christian Vieri clearly has a lot of admiration for current Inter striker Edin Dzeko who he feels should have come to the club sooner in his career because he is now almost 36 years old.
“It’s a pity for Inter that Dzeko did not arrive earlier, because he is almost 36 years old and some say he is good, but he is old now: we only talk about age in Italy. Dzeko is what everyone sees: he scores and scores, he has great technique, soft feet, perfect to drop back and help the team, to decide when to give the ball and when to keep it.”
As for Edin Dzeko’s striker partner Lautaro Martinez, Christian Vieri believes that he has the killer eyes of a quality striker and that is why he can combine so well with the Bosnian forward.
“If you give Lautaro Martinez space, you can see that he has killer eyes. And you know that you may have made an unforgivable mistake. That’s why he and Dzeko combined so well: Edin opens up a lot of space and he throws himself into it.
“The problem for those who have to mark him is that he always does it in a different way: he is a modern, universal tip, he constantly changes position like a snake.”
As for which of the two Milan teams has the most squad depth right now, Christian Vieri feels that it is quite clearly Inter. He says that almost everyone on the bench is a quality player.
“Inter have the biggest bench, it is not a great discovery: I would say it’s very good, and it is a big plus for Inzaghi. A bench also of weight: practically all players of quality and experience, who in games like this it doesn’t matter.”
Christian Vieri feels that Inter and AC Milan had difficult strategies for the January transfer window with the Nerazzurri taking more of a short term approach.
“More than judging who did better or worse, it is correct to say that Inter and Milan had different strategies. In the immediate future, Inter certainly did more: careful transfer market, they spent on the right players in the right places, as they had already done last summer.
“Gosens is perfect, extraordinary purchase: quality and quantity, it has protected itself even if Perisic does not have to renew. Caicedo is a pupil of Inzaghi and this counts, it is no coincidence that Simone immediately wanted him.
“Milan is a club undergoing reconstruction, so they need time, and by taking an 18-year-old boy like Lazetic they looked to the future more than to the present.
“They would have needed a defender, of course, it is no coincidence that they sought him out until the end, but then they chose consistency with the project.”
