Inter director Beppe Marotta doesn’t agree with Antonio Conte that second place is futile, but shrugs off Lionel Messi rumours as ‘fantasy football.’
The Nerazzurri visit Genoa at 18.30 UK time (17.30 GMT), click here for the line-ups and LIVEBLOG.
“Obviously, second place is important, but our analysis has to be about constant growth and the season is not yet over,” Marotta told Sky Sport Italia.
Inter director Beppe Marotta doesn’t agree with Antonio Conte that second place is futile, but shrugs off Lionel Messi rumours as ‘fantasy football.’
The Nerazzurri visit Genoa at 18.30 UK time (17.30 GMT), click here for the line-ups and LIVEBLOG.
“Obviously, second place is important, but our analysis has to be about constant growth and the season is not yet over,” Marotta told Sky Sport Italia.
“What we’ve been able to see is that we’ve improved and therefore we want to continue that process. If we analyse our entire journey, we are happy. There are a few small regrets seeing what happened to those in front of us, but we have to be happy with what we’ve achieved.
“This is an anomalous campaign after the lockdown, so it becomes difficult to fully evaluate players and teams. We must prepare for the next season, which as a consequence of this timing, will also not be easy.”
Conte also protested that Inter were being ‘damaged’ by the fixture list post-lockdown, as they don’t get as much rest time as some others.
“We were penalised, that much is obvious, but it was difficult to put together the various requirements of a compressed fixture list. I don’t blame the Lega Serie A, we can just use this to understand that details often make the difference in football.”
La Gazzetta dello Sport continues to push the suggestion Messi could come to Inter, as his father has reportedly bought a house in Milan.
“It’s fantasy football,” replied Marotta. “He certainly is not one of our objectives and I think he’s interested in continuing his football career in Barcelona.”
A player Inter do want to sign is Alexis Sanchez, but negotiations continue with Manchester United not just to extend the loan, but to make the deal permanent.
“It’s an anomalous issue, considering the Europa League can be changed by the absence of certain players. The situation has not been resolved yet, we are working to at least keep hold of him for the entire Europa League.”