Simone Inzaghi ‘hopes’ Inter can be even stronger than last season after numerous changes and insists he is ‘happy for Italian football’ that Romelu Lukaku is heading to Roma on loan from Chelsea.
It was a comfortable victory in Cagliari, as Denzel Dumfries and Lautaro Martinez found the back of the net in the opening 30 minutes.
Lautaro Martinez and Hakan Calhanoglu also struck the frame of the goal, while Yann Sommer only made one real save late on from Paulo Azzi’s scuffed finish.
“The lads did very well, from the first minute we had the right approach against a newly-promoted side that had done very well in its opening game and was making its return to Serie A in front of the fans,” Inzaghi told DAZN.
Wing-backs have always been a key role in Inzaghi’s teams, including at Lazio, and he traditionally substitutes them in the second half.
“They are very important, we have mezz’ala players who can become strikers at certain moments of the match too.”
Marcus Thuram provided the first assist of his career in the Inter jersey and was again preferred to Marko Arnautovic.
“He did really well, as he arrived six weeks ago and has worked from the first day with great focus. He settled in very quickly, he is intelligent, knows when to close the gaps, when to create the space. I think he deserved a goal today for the work that he did.”
Lautaro Martinez remains on remarkable form, scoring three goals in the opening two Serie A games, seemingly relishing his new role as captain.
“In these two years and a bit I have been at Inter, he has been growing exponentially. He feels more and more responsibility, he has a key role in the way we interpret the game and I am sure he will continue like this.”
This was a repeat of the 2-0 win against Monza, so they are yet to concede so far this season, and catch Napoli, Milan and Hellas Verona at the top of the table as the only teams with a perfect record.
Despite reaching the Champions League Final, retaining the Coppa Italia and the Supercoppa Italiana, Inzaghi still spent most of last season with the Sword of Damocles constantly dangling over him, with reports of a dismissal every other week.
“I have been at Inter for two years and a bit, I have travelled my path, I am happy to be here at this great club with these wonderful fans,” said the coach.
“I know we have a lot of responsibility here, but at the same time I am satisfied with what we did, winning trophies and doing important things that our fans had been waiting a long time for.”
Lukaku agreed the transfer to Roma today, on loan for circa €8m including add-ons from Chelsea, so Inzaghi was asked for his opinion on that move.
“Roma have done a great deal, it is good for Italian football to have Lukaku back. He is a great player, as we all know. I am very satisfied with the squad at my disposal and the values they bring to the Inter family.”
The Belgian spent last season at Inter and was in negotiations to make it permanent, until they were infuriated by news he was also in talks with their arch-rivals Juventus.
Inter lost some big players like Lukaku, Edin Dzeko, Andre Onana and Milan Skriniar, but brought in Thuram, Alexis Sanchez, Yann Sommer and hopefully also Benjamin Pavard.
Inzaghi was asked if the current squad will be even stronger than last season?
“That is what we hope. We know that we lost important players, we changed 10 members of the squad and there’s no point denying that, but we still see an organised Inter with its tactical principles. That is a great sign for a coach.”