Inter assistant manager Massimiliano Farris marvelled at his team’s fitness levels and ‘mental strength’ in the showdown with Napoli. ‘We smothered their enthusiasm.’
The Nerazzurri retain top spot thanks to this 1-1 draw at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, although Milan could leapfrog them with a win over Sampdoria tomorrow.
An early Lorenzo Insigne penalty had opened the scoring after Stefan de Vrij caught Victor Osimhen, while the woodwork kept out Piotr Zielinski.
However, Edin Dzeko pounced on a lucky ricochet within 30 seconds of the restart and Inter took home a 1-1 draw.
Serie A | Napoli 1-1 Inter: Dzeko keeps it honours even in Naples
“The second half performance says a great deal about the quality of this squad,” Inzaghi’s assistant Farris told DAZN, as the coach was on a touchline ban.
“We had some regrets at half-time, but the second half showed a great reaction and mental strength in a fiery atmosphere. We smothered Napoli’s enthusiasm and could’ve won it at the end, but we’re content with a point here.
“Napoli changed tactics to five and that was a sign of them backing off, while we still had fuel in the tank, despite coming off the derby and a Coppa Italia match, whereas Napoli had all week to prepare for this game.”
Inter didn’t make any substitutions until the 82nd minute, another sign of their remarkable fitness levels.
“The team was controlling the situation well and Alexis Sanchez was on the touchline for five minutes before coming on. It’s all a positive sign.
“Our plan was to push one of the wing-backs forward in turn, but Denzel Dumfries had some difficulty with Insigne in his path. In the long-run, this teamwork ended up tiring the Napoli midfielders more than ours.
“Dumfries was treated like someone who was struggling at the start, but he settled in very quickly, is learning the language and the tactics, trying ways to personalise his movements.”
.@Inter I Le parole di Massimiliano #Farris dopo #NapoliInter https://t.co/BmgiCC5KXc
— Gianluca Di Marzio (@DiMarzio) February 12, 2022
Compliments to Inter from a big Napoli fan. In my view, Napoli almost gave the game away. Osimhen still plays with more enthusiasm than intelligence, and when that changes, Napoli will be very difficult to beat.
Well played, Inter; but there’s always a next time, even if we have to wait until next season.