Andrea Pinamonti admitted he was ‘sorry to leave’ Inter and explained why it was the right choice for his career.
The Italian striker joined the Nerazzurri youth system as a 14-year-old and spent a decade attached to the club before being definitively sold to Sassuolo this summer for around €20m following a successful season on loan.
Pinamonti never managed to break into the Inter first team and only made 15 senior appearances before his departure, spending years on loan with clubs like Empoli, Genoa and Frosinone.
Speaking to La Gazzetta dello Sport via Calciomercato.com, Pinamonti first discussed the importance of his second season with Sassuolo following his definitive transfer.
“This is the season in which I can and must do well to get where I want to be, I have to improve and I want to do it. I don’t feel indebted, because last year I scored little but I gave everything.
“I didn’t do the pre-season with my teammates, then between injuries and disqualifications the team was rarely full. But I have a lot of gratitude and I work every day to repay the club’s trust. Now we’ve changed something, Dionisi is helping me to bring out my qualities and I’m better.
“I’m confident, we can get a lot of satisfaction. I’m very ambitious, the coach’s trust is decisive. If I don’t score I’m not happy for sure, but I try to stay calm. I’ve worked on this aspect, I believe I’m in line with the path of growth and I’m satisfied with what I’ve done.”
He reflected on his time with Inter and thanked them for his development.
“I was sorry to leave the Nerazzurri, I had been there for so many years. But I was also satisfied and confident, because I didn’t want to continue on loan. I am grateful to Inter, they made me grow.”
The 24-year-old touched on his desire to break into the Italy national team.
“It’s everyone’s goal, so it’s mine too. If I do well, maybe it will happen. I trained with Spalletti for a year at Inter, when I was attached to the first team. I got on very well with him.”
Finally, Pinamonti was asked if the Azzurri had a centre forward crisis.
“Quantitatively yes, but qualitatively no. And I hope that as soon as possible the performance of Italian forwards, including myself, will grow to the point where this suspicion will be erased.”
In his first season with Sassuolo, Pinamonti scored five goals and provided one assist in 32 appearances across all competitions, struggling to show his best under Alessio Dionisi.
Things are looking more positive this campaign and the 24-year-old has already netted two goals in the club’s first four outings.