Inter took on Celtic today at the Meazza in the second leg of their Europa League round of 32 showdown. The first match saw a mix of inspiring and disappointing play from Inter but ended in a 3-3 draw. However, the squad could be redeemed by having a good showing at home and qualifying for the next round of the tournament against a beatable Celtic side. While the three away goals that Inter scored in the first leg gave the Nerazzurri a favorable position heading in to this match. I hoped to see an Inter squad that came out of the gates with tempo and took their chances, announcing that we could be both cynical and clinical in Europe. Moreover, I wanted to see an Inter that was concentrated for 90 minutes and without serious mental or psychological lapses.
The game began relatively cautiously compared to last week with both teams looking to feel one another out. Inter was having trouble maintaining possession of the ball and imposing themselves on the game and once again Carrizo was forced to make a great save when the defense let Guidetti go free in the Inter box early on. At the other end Icardi was inches away from burying a great cross-box ball from Santon. However by the 25’ minute mark neither team had taken control of this tie.
Inter were given a boost in the 35th when Van Djik received his second yellow and was given his marching orders. However, from the free-kick Inter were robbed by the Celtic keeper with a miraculous save on a strong Icardi header. After this Inter had great opportunities from Shaqiri blocked and Danilo saved by the keeper. Although Inter began to take control after the red card; the passing and build up play was not on in the first half. Statistically Hernanes was prolific but other than a few individual moves he was not great; getting dispossessed in dangerous positions various times in the half.
Inter started the second half vey cautiously once again and were giving up far too much of the ball for a team with superior numbers. Moreover, the Nerazzurri were failing to attack with pace and keep Celtic under pressure. When Inter did get chances the Celtic keeper was standing on his head making save after save. Interestingly, Mancini once again handed written instructions to Ranocchia but this time he passed it on and everyone in the class had a look.
Inter continued to look frustrating in attack and although Celtic had very little of the ball the nerves were beginning to creep in as time went on. Oddly, Mancini waited until the 79th to make his first changes, replacing Hernanes with Kovacic and Campagnaro for Danilo. It seemed like the longer time passed, the more likely it was that something terrible would happen. Happily, just when I was about to melt into my seat from nerves Freddy Guarin stepped up and hit an absolute blockbuster into the top corner of the net and sealed Inter’s place in the round of 16. Thank you Freddy.
Ultimately this match was far from perfect. Inter were up a man for most of it and failed to take the initiative throughout. Although a draw would have sent us through, scoring a couple of goals would have made this experience a lot easier and I am not totally convinced by what I witnessed on the pitch this evening. Individually, other than the goal Freddy Guarin had an average night and Xherdan Shaqiri looked a bit tired and was not as prolific as he was in the first leg. Carrizo was not called on often but made a big save on Guidetti early and controlled his box tonight. Moreover, Palacio sacrificed himself physically tonight and did a ton of running for the team. We did play against 10 men but Inter did not concede and that was promising for our defenses confidence. I almost suffered a heart attack but the Nerazzurri and I are still alive. On to the next one.
#Guarinnewcaptain
Am I the only one that thought that we actually played pretty well? We created a million chances, you could see our chemistry in attack growing, especially between Icardi and Palacio when they were both up front. I saw a lot of beautiful passing moves that would have bothered any opposition.
Guarin was man of the match;her was absolutely domineering. Yes, he gave the ball away a few times, but he drove our attack forward.
Next, Icarus really impressed me; he was practically toying with Celtic. Mancini has really ignited a passion for the game in him. He was very good in hold up play and is really improving in all aspects of the build up.
Palacio really gave his all for the team, but he’s just a step slower than usual. Otherwise, he would be punishing teams.
Shaqiri is very impressive in that he makes a huge impact on the game even when he seems invisible. He has fantastic control of the ball and has a knack for getting the right pass off to teammates under pressure in a timely manner. After Kovacic came on, you could see the difference – Kovacic would control the ball in a position where he was being pressured by the oposition, but he takes an extra stop-step before he passed the ball. Shaqiri does it all in stride. Also, his crosses and set piece deliveries are world class. It’s a wonder we don’t score from a set piece every game.
Hernanes looks like he is regaining some form. If we can get him back to performing at this level regularly, then I think we’re practically set in midfield; we just need another holding midfielder to backup Medel because if he gets injured we are in a boat load of trouble.
Medel was a destructive force as usual.
Santon has turned out to be a a treasure we found in the trash; he does everything that a fullback is supposed to do. It’s very refreshing to see him occupying the proper positions to relieve pressure when a midfielder is getting pressed, making timely overlapping runs, and whipping in dangerous crosses. The crossing makes the rest of our fullbacks look like bums off the street.
I thought D’Ambrosio looked really rusty and was the worst player on the field for Inter. This was especially apparent at the beginning of the game. He did begin to look better as the game progressed and almost scored, the keeper was very lucky that his foot was planted im the way of the shot, otherwise I’m not sure he would have been able to do much about that shot. Danilo was playing pretty well when he received his injury and I hope that he can recover that form quickly. He was taken off early, and you have to wonder if he had the legs to start on Sunday; we really need him. Forgot to mention, Celtic’s best chance on the night came directly from D’Ambrosio getting beaten by Guidetti.
Juan was the usual strong and confident self. He continues to slowly but surely improve regardless of the surrounding circumstances. I also have to mention that he is very consistent and rarely makes errors. This, coupled with his physical attributes, could make him a top defender in years to come.
Ranocchia is a conundrum, because sometimes he dominates opponents with his length, others he makes world class tackles, but then he makes completely boneheaded errors on a regular basis. This game he didn’t make any costly errors but can’t say that he looked domineering either. Considering the effect that Mancini has had on the mental fortitude of some of our other players, I hope that he is able to open Ranocchia’s eyes too. This will be a topic to monitor for the rest of the season; the defense is the weakest part of our squad and we will have to reinforce during the summer. You would have to think that Campagnaro will go, possibly being joined by Vidic, Andreolli, and Ranocchia. Next, we should clear out our fullback corps so only Santon, D’Ambrosio, and maybe Dodo are left. This leaves a lot of work to be done for Ausilio in the summer.
Carrizo had the important save on Guidetti early on and just did what was asked of him for the rest of the game.
Currently, our biggest problem is finishing chances; we created a boat load of them, but it took a wondrous strike from Guarin to close the game out. Also, we still have some trouble transitioning the ball out of the defense towards the attacking phase. We must eliminate the loss of posetion in the midfield area during the transition. But every game you see the growing chemistry between the players and hopefully it clicks for them sooner than later.
Financially, we are really dependent on making the Champions League for next year. I suspect that we have already spent the CL bonus money in the January, maybe not directly, because all of the payments are in the future, but practically. It will be interesting to see the kind of budget that Ausilio will get. We need at least 2 fullbacks, a holding mid, center backs, and an attacking player, depending on whether Mancini wants the 4231 or 4312 going forward.
Fiorentina will really be a litmus test for us this weekend. If we win comfortably, it may spread our ambitions.
Forza Inter!
Sorry but im not going to read all that
Thank you for your integral contribution to the conversation
Man do we need a world class cb and a proper full back, preferably lb as santon is great as a rb. Add to this, we definitely need another striker to replace palacio becauhe is officially done regarding his career at inter. Dybala is out of the discussion because almost impossible to get him. Murillo as cb might be good but we just don’t know how good he would be. Lots of work to be done during this summer especially focusing on the defensive department
I’m not sure about Palacio being done, a summer off will, hopefully, allow his ankle to heal. I meant more of as a backup to Icardi, he’s basically our only true striker. Also really need a backup for Medel. These guys are bound to run out of gas eventually, playing twice a week.
I read all that. Thanks.
Please, it’s spelled Fredy. I expect better. 😉
Does anyone know why we were wearing our third kit and not our home one? Anyway I think Inter were quite solid overall maybe the attack wasn’t quite as electric as in some matches but that’s probably due to fitness.
Also to give credit where credit is due, Ranocchia had a pretty decent game if I say so myself, good job.
Hernanes was excellent as well as Guarin who was bossing the midfield and ofcourse that screamer at the 88th minute.
Santon and D’ambrosio played quite well, Santon was a bit better, D’ambrosio sometimes looked out of focus.
Shaqiri didn’t have his best game this time.
Palacio was killing himself for the team this match, huge props to him.
Carrizo played a really good game as well, important save in the first 10 minutes.
Idk about the kits, strange, true.
I’m pretty sure our home kit is black and blue.
Yeah, brainfart moment by me, too tired from today, edited my message instantly after I realized what I wrote 😀
I thinks it’s the one for Europa league
I don’t like this kit, neither its color nor its polo collar.
the 1st & 2nd for national and the 3rd one is the 1st option for european championship.
Super heartattack at the last 3 minutes when Ranocchia was doing his brainless moves.
Our captain always lost his focus on the last 10 mins
He was just making sure we were still watching the game!
Super Guaro~~~