Di Canio: “Inter is a fragile team, Akanji has great difficulties in marking”

The defeat against Club Brugge has reopened the debate about Inter‘s defensive shortcomings. Speaking to Sky Sport, on the After Party program, Di Canio critically analyzed the Nerazzurri’s recent performances, identifying structural problems that go beyond the individual result.

“Just watch the matches in Italy too, not only in Europe: opponents get there easily, then they don’t have the quality at the international level and don’t always punish you. They always get to within 25 meters, then you need the quality to make the right pass to your teammate, and in Italy the bottom 12 teams don’t have this quality. Inter’s first pressing is not as fierce as it used to be, they are light, not fierce and determined, they run only looking at the position they have to occupy.”

The former player then broadened his view to the club’s recent European seasons, drawing a parallel with the two Champions League finals. “The two years you reach the final, Inter scored less than half the goals, didn’t concede that much but couldn’t be proactive because it was a team that couldn’t have the strength it had in Italy. In fact, in the two years they reached the final, they didn’t win the league. They gave everything there, but in terms of quality they couldn’t create; the matches against Porto, against Benfica, they played defensive games where Lautaro defends like Kean in front of the box. This is a fragile team. Akanji has never been a defender, but an organizer of defensive play.”

On the Swiss center-back, Di Canio dwelled with a detailed assessment: “He is a player who is a godsend for Inter, in individual defensive tactics he makes excellent recoveries, but if he has to orient himself he has great difficulties. I’m not talking about the last goal, which is something incredible, how he lets him go and stops, in my opinion it’s unacceptable. A player like this arrives and people think he’s complete, in the league it’s fine because Inter with the same performance wins 5-2 against an average Italian team, this is the difference.”

The European record outlined by the former striker is clear: “In the Champions League he had 7 defeats and all deserved: against Bodo he deserved to go out, with the others he deserved to lose. The players are very strong, but there is no phenomenon in this team.”