Speaking to Sky Sport, journalist Paolo Condò analyzed Inter‘s performance in the Champions League defeat against Bruges, focusing in particular on two aspects: the goalkeeper’s individual errors and the structural shortcomings in the defensive phase.
Condò’s starting point is Martinez‘s performance: “Inter made two blunders in Madrid and two again last night, especially the one by Martinez, which needs to be discussed. His situation seems similar to what happened to Di Gregorio at Juventus. His value is not in question, because he manages to pull off some excellent saves, but he can’t maintain concentration for the whole match. That exit yesterday is inexplicable, I don’t know what was going through his mind, it was the attitude of someone who feels they have something to prove.”
On the possible intervention by Chivu, Condò rules out a substitution ahead of the away match in Bologna: “I don’t think Chivu will leave him out in Bologna, because if I understand his management strategy, if someone makes a mistake he confirms them to avoid bringing them down. But the time is still coming to give Provedel a chance.”
The analysis then shifts to the team’s defensive mechanisms. Condò recalls the episode of the goal conceded from a corner: “Inter conceded a goal from a corner in their favor, when Forbs broke away it was immediately clear he wouldn’t be caught. When Chivu talks about wanting to change something, I think he refers to situations like this, where all the defenders go up for the header and then maybe two midfielders like Calhanoglu and Barella are left chasing the opponents.”
Despite the criticism, the journalist maintains a positive assessment of the overall value of the group: “I stubbornly believe that this team is stronger than last year, because Chivu has more options to change things. But in a team focused on attacking, attention in the defensive phase is fundamental. And at the moment Inter seem very distracted in defense.”
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