Inter defender Milan Skriniar said there’s ‘not much difference’ since Achraf Hakimi left but admitted the Nerazzurri must improve defensively. ‘We concede a lot’.
Skriniar spoke ahead of the Champions League clash with FC Sheriff Tiraspol on Tuesday night and was asked about the difference at the Nerazzurr now that Hakimi doesn’t play at right-back anymore.
Denzel Dumfries was brought in to replace the Morocco international, who moved to Paris Saint-Germain this summer, while Skriniar highlighted he has a good feeling with Matteo Darmian, who was already there last term.
“Hakimi is very strong, we all know that,” Skriniar said at a press conference. “But I played many games with Darmian last year too and we have a good feeling, as well as with Denzel.
“There’s not much difference, I do my role and we all try to help the team.”
Inter have conceded in the last seven Serie A games and Skriniar admitted they ‘are not happy’ about the current record in defence.
“We are certainly conceding a lot of goals, but that’s how Inzaghi’s teams are,” he said. “We have to find the balance in attack and defence. If you don’t concede, you have better chances of winning.
“We concede a lot, we are not happy, and we must improve.”
Skriniar said the players never needed to discuss the desire to advance in the Champions League this season.
“Even the new players know that we want to move forward in the Champions League,” he said. “In my opinion, it wasn’t necessary.
“We all know what it means to play for Inter and what it means to play in the Champions League. We must focus on tomorrow’s match.”
The busy fixture list has been a hot topic in recent weeks but Skriniar, who is a regular with Slovakia too, said Inter are happy to play in all the ‘great compeitions’.
“I don’t think it’s more difficult,” he said. “Surely, there are a lot of games but if you play in big teams like Inter, there’s the Champions League, the League, all the great competitions in which you want to move forward.
“We have strong players and we are happy with how we are playing in the competitions.”