Federico Dimarco has struggled to fill the void left behind by Ivan Perisic in Simone Inzaghi’s Inter squad this season but his Azzurri performances suggest he has the capability to do so, notes Apollo Heyes.
The 33-year-old Croatian wing back left the Nerazzurri on a free transfer in the summer, joining up with Antonio Conte at Tottenham. He’s immediately impressed in North London, providing four assists across the league and Champions League as he continues to show his qualities on the left flank.
Whilst Perisic is flying high with Tottenham, Dimarco has struggled to get off the ground with Inter this season, failing to contribute to a goal in his eight appearances across all competitions. Inzaghi has mostly used the 24-year-old as a centre back rather than left wing back, but his Azzurri work seems to suggest that he’s fully capable of being a strong option out wide.
Robin Gosens is also an option for Inzaghi, but the German has not replicated his Atalanta performances since making the move across Lombardy back in January. He has drawn attention to this himself, detailing how he’s “not in the same shape I was in Bergamo. I’m close, but at the same time, I know that there is still a lot of work to do.”
In his last three Italy appearances, Dimarco has provided two assists and impressed playing as the left wing back. In the 2-0 win over Hungary, the Inter man took four shots, created two chances and took 59 touches. In the 1-0 win over England, Dimarco created one chance, took 51 touches and won three tackles, doing well both offensively and defensively.
His work with the Azzurri should give Inzaghi enough confidence to trust in Dimarco on the left side and give him the chance to show his qualities, but he’ll have to rise to the occasion after a few unconvincing outings in the role for the Nerazzurri. If the 24-year-old can pull this off, he’ll be able to prove himself as the right man to replace Perisic for Inter.