Dejan Stankovic thanks Inter fans for their welcome to San Siro and tries to look at the ‘positives’ for Sampdoria before revealing the reason for an intense friendship with Romelu Lukaku.
This was a special night for the Serbian, who returned to the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza as an opponent for the first time since winning the Treble with Inter in 2010.
He was also a former teammate of Simone Inzaghi at Lazio, so there were emotions all around, and he did seem moved at the standing ovation he received from the crowd during the warm-up.
“My past at Inter was spectacular, I thank the fans for their welcome and banners. During the game, there are no friends, it is a battle, but before it my thoughts were all on my own team and fans. Now I can truly comment on it,” Stankovic told Sky Sport Italia.
“When you concede a goal from a set play, against a strong side like Inter who are fighting for very different targets compared to us, who progressed in the Champions League and believe in the Scudetto…
“Our initial impact was good, but when you concede from a corner, that makes it easier for Inter. Another goal was a ball from 60 metres over the top, we should’ve been ready and organised on that.”
However, Stankovic tried to look on the bright side after two wins, a draw and two defeats on the Blucerchiati bench between Serie A and the Coppa Italia.
“My team was alive to the end, we never gave up and these are the things I take from this evening, that we fight to the end and don’t want to lose. Nobody likes defeat, but I take the positive elements. We could’ve done better, but could’ve done worse too.
“I thank the fans who came from Genoa, as they cheered us on for 90 minutes.”
There was a very long and intense embrace after the final whistle between Stankovic and Lukaku on the touchline, exchanging words. How did this friendship with Lukaku begin?
“He embraced my children, the goalkeeper Filip and also Aleksandar who trained a little with the senior squad. He took them under his protective wing, had a shirt exchange, he’s got a heart of gold and I thank him for that affection towards my children.”
Goalkeeper Filip Stankovic spent time with the Inter academy and is now on loan with FC Volendam, while Aleksandar is still in the Primavera youth team.