Inter star Hakan Calhanoglu claims the penalty kick against Juventus was the most important one he’s taken in his career and admits he knew that replacing Christian Eriksen would have been difficult.
The Turkey international joined the Nerazzurri on a free transfer from Milan in the summer, replacing the Denmark international who was not allowed to play in Italy after having a heart-restarter implanted in the summer. The former Tottenham star had suffered a heart attack during Denmark’s Euro 2020 debut against Finland in June.
“I always want to give my best for the team, I knew it would have been difficult to replace Eriksen,” Calhanoglu told Sportmediaset.
“Even the new signings have quality and we also want to win at Inter.”
Calhanoglu scored the decisive penalty kick in the derby d’Italia against Juventus on Sunday night, allowing his side to move four points off leaders Milan on top of the table. Simone Inzaghi’s boys have a game in hand and can potentially move one point behind the Rossoneri.
The Nerazzurri have won only two games at the Allianz Stadium in their history and Sunday’s victory was the first one in ten years.
“It’s never easy to beat Juventus away, but now we must continue,” said Calhanoglu.
“Perhaps, it wasn’t our best performance, but the three points are all that matter now. It was the most important penalty kick in my career. I had missed the first one, but I had confidence in myself, so I scored the second and we won.
“I’ve never thought about not taking the second one. I trust my shooting skills and I was sure I’d score. I apologised to fans after missing the first one, I knew how much it matters to them to beat Juventus.”
Inter host Verona at San Siro in the next Serie A match.
“We want to win with the help of our fans. There is no more room for mistakes and we absolutely believe that we can make it. I don’t like to talk too much. I want to stay here and my dream is to win something with Inter.”
Calha: "Il rigore più importante della mia carriera: crediamo nello scudetto" #inter #juventus #calhanoglu https://t.co/DU4XmxOS5k pic.twitter.com/l84Pm5ZNP6
— SportMediaset.it (@sportmediaset) April 6, 2022