Alessandro Bastoni admitted that he’d suit Pep Guardiola’s system at Manchester City but underlined that he’s only looking to prove himself to Inter in the Champions League final.
The 24-year-old Italian defender has been regularly linked with a move to the Premier League in recent seasons, but has blocked out all transfer market noise ahead of the upcoming European final in Istanbul, which’ll kick off on June 10.
Inter showed their strengths in a 3-0 aggregate win over Milan in the Champions League semi-final, but will have taken note of Manchester City’s dominance in their 5-1 aggregate win over Real Madrid on the other side of the bracket.
Speaking in a press conference, Bastoni first discussed what Inter will need to do in their Champions League final against Manchester City.
“It’s a difficult match, a Champions League final, we are charged up and determined, happy to be able to play a match like this.”
He gave his thoughts on the Cityzens.
“We’ve seen a lot of City’s games, we know their value and we know that bringing them too close to our game can give us problems. We will analyse better in the next few days, so far we were thinking about the league.”
The Italian defender was asked about his suitability for Guardiola’s system.
“Yes, with my characteristics perhaps I reflect Guardiola’s game, but at the moment I am more ‘Inzaghiano’ than ever. I’m happy with what we’ve shown, I’m not interested in proving anything other than to my coach, my teammates and my fans.”
The 24-year-old spoke about any fears of Manchester City.
“Scared of murderers, thieves. Not of boys my age. We need to go out on the pitch and play football, with a clear mind.”
He touched on how to stop Erling Haaland.
“He said it, they bought him to win the Champions League. But City are not just him, there are many players who can put us in trouble.”
Bastoni spoke about which defenders he’s studied in an attempt to be ready for Haaland.
“I have seen videos of Rudiger, we will try to take his example. But it’s not Haaland-Inter, it’s City-Inter. And we will try to stop them.”
He was asked if the fact that City were the favourites affected him or the squad.
“It’s normal that they are favourites. There is no fear, but the right tension, since we were seven or eight years old we all dreamed of playing a game like this. I can’t wait to get on the pitch.”
The 24-year-old commented on his dream of lifting the Champions League trophy.
“Definitely yes. It’s a dream that few thought we would achieve this year, we are honoured to be able to take the field in Istanbul wearing the Inter shirt and at this point we want to win.”
The Inter defender highlighted three key games this season.
“Barcelona, first leg and the return leg. And then the semi-final with Milan.”
He spoke about what Andre Onana and Francesco Acerbi have added to the Nerazzurri defence.
“Onana has given us great experience and confidence, he has already played a Champions League semi-final with Ajax.
“Acerbi I already knew from the national team, he’s a very reliable player and man, he also gave us great experience.”
Finally, Bastoni was asked if Inter could seize the opportunity to start a new cycle with a Champions League win.
“We’ll have to take advantage of the opportunity we have, we don’t know when it will happen again.”