Inter director Beppe Marotta insists club directors have ‘always backed’ coach Simone Inzaghi who has a year left in his contract and admits Chelsea’s new coach will be crucial for the future of Romelu Lukaku.
The Nerazzurri prepare to meet Sassuolo at San Siro tonight.
It kicks off at 19:45 GMT+1. You can follow the match on the Football Italia liveblog.
“We have important values to face a tricky and valuable team. The mental aspect is fundamental,” Marotta told Sky Sport Italia before kick-off.
Inzaghi was under pressure only a few weeks ago, but the Nerazzurri have won the last four Serie A games and beat city rivals Milan 2-0 in a Champions League semifinal first leg this past Wednesday. There are conflicting reports on the future of the Italian tactician who has also been linked with the Tottenham job.
“We can say that we are happy to have him. He is an excellent coach. We’ll talk about the future later on,” said Marotta.
“He has one year left in his contract and we’ll discuss everything with the other directors. There will be no problems, now we live in the present and a match that will be an important test ahead of Tuesday.”
At this point, Marotta was asked to clearly state Inzaghi would stay in 2023-24.
“I’ve never said the contrary, he has a contract so there will be continuity. There are different moments during a season, some with more pressure, while others are positive, like this one. We’ve always backed the coach also in difficult moments. There was a bit of tension, but is part of the game.”
Romelu Lukaku starts alongside Joaquin Correa tonight, but the Belgian will return to Chelsea in June. Are Inter planning to bring the striker back again next season?
“He is on loan until June 30, then he’ll be back to Chelsea who will decide his future, we still don’t know the directors and the next coach of the Blues,” explained Marotta.
“Will we bring him back? We’ll evaluate in the future when we’ll sit down with the technical area. Now we are focused on the present with extraordinary games ahead.”