On the eve of the derby against Milan, Chivu held the press conference from the Optus Stadium in Perth. The friendly match, scheduled for Wednesday, August 5 at 1:00 PM Italian time, closes the second leg of the Australian tour after Hong Kong and before the final test against Juventus.
The Inter coach clarified the priorities for this phase: “I want to see growth from a physical and fitness point of view, I’m not looking at the type of match we have to face. I’m satisfied with the fact that some players at this stage of preparation will play a few more minutes, always paying attention to whether we have overcome the jet lag and how many risks we can take.”
Regarding the return of players involved in the World Cup, Chivu expressed doubts about their availability: “I doubt they will be ready for the first league match, we’ll see how much time it will take to get them back on the field, we don’t want to take too many risks. It’s not easy.”
Asked about the meaning of the derby and the script of last season, when Inter won the league despite losing both derbies, the coach replied: “That’s a question for the fans, I’m the coach, I have to worry about getting my players in the best condition for the league debut, tomorrow’s match is a friendly and August trophies don’t mean anything.”
There was also space for the young players joining the first team. “I know who we have available, I hope they look at the path of Federico, Pio, Aleksandar: it depends on them, on the intensity they put in, on the level they manage to show in matches with the seniors, which is different from what they find in youth leagues,” said Chivu.
On the topic of possibly exporting a league match abroad, the coach was open to a solution: “It would be nice, but it’s not easy to organize. One idea could be to have it at the start of the season, maybe the first matchday played abroad, arriving a week earlier. Promoting Italian football is definitely important: we all want it, but something needs to be done.”
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