Just a few hours before the match against Lazio for the 16th round of Serie A, Simone Inzaghi presented the game at the official microphones of the club. The Inter coach explained what he expects from this difficult away game in Rome and also admitted that being a former player, this game is always special for him, here are the complete statements of the nerazzurri coach.
You face a team among the most in form in Europe and who know how to read games well: what game do you expect and what will be the balances to manage? It will certainly be a complicated game: we face an opponent who has won 16 games out of 22 officials and who also when they did not win played excellent matches. It will be a difficult commitment that we will have to interpret in the best possible way.
Lazio have many dangerous players who can make a difference: what do you think is the reason for their excellent performance? We must give credit to everyone, I think of the club and the coach. Baroni is doing great things, the team is organized and the players are playing excellent football, with an excellent proposal of the game: this is right to be highlighted by all of us.
After a Champions League game it is never easy to recover physical and mental energies: what is the aspect that you and your staff need to work on the most? We know that international matches take away energy, just look at the results of the last weekend, but it’s the same for Inter, for Lazio and for all the teams that play the Cups and certainly participating in the European Cups is a reason of pride and prestige. Both teams will however do their best to play an excellent game.
This match is also a high-ranking challenge: this year the championship is more open, with more teams fighting for the title. Do you think Lazio can get involved? I had said on the eve of the championship that it would have been a balanced tournament, with many contenders who have strengthened themselves. In my opinion, it is right to also consider Lazio because, beyond the positive ranking, it has a well-organized game proposal that allows it to be included among the contenders for the victory.
Returning to the Olympic where you started your coaching career always has a special meaning: what emotions do you feel and how much do you feel this challenge also on a personal level? The match with Lazio for me will never be a game like any other, even though tomorrow it seems to me that it is already the eighth time that I face it, the fourth at the Olympic. I do not forget what my journey and the trophies won, first on the field and then on the bench. For this I thank my teammates and my players: a thought goes certainly to all of Lazio, to Lotito, to Tare and to all the players that I have had later. I have the fortune to have worked at Lazio, now I think about Inter: a company where I am very well at this moment and where I feel appreciated by all the components. For this reason, I am proud of what I am doing here at Inter.
