Among the main differences between the management of Inzaghi and that of Chivu, there is certainly the organization of pressing. Under the Romanian coach, Inter has in fact become an overall more aggressive team: the much higher defensive line favors a more intense and immediate ball recovery when the ball ends up at the opponent’s feet.
The concept of aggressive regaining of possession once the ball is lost, which Chivu has insisted on so much so far, as reported this morning by Corriere dello Sport, derives from the ‘blitz’ in American football, of which the coach is a huge fan. Not by chance, as revealed by the coach himself after the Inter-Lazio match, next Sunday the Inter coach will be at the Santiago Bernabeu to watch the incredible game between the Miami Dolphins and the Washington Commanders scheduled to take place in Madrid.
Returning to the concept of pressing, Chivu has always said he is fascinated by the tactical dynamics of the NFL: hence his way of interpreting the defensive phase as a blitz, that is, “a defensive action in which a high number of players cross the line of scrimmage – that is, the imaginary line that separates the two teams – to try to make a sack (tackle) on the opposing quarterback.”
It is a high-risk maneuver because it exposes the defense, but if executed with precision and coordination it can break the rhythm of the attack and change the momentum of the match. In the same way, Chivu’s Inter applies aggressive and organized pressing, aiming to suffocate the opponent’s build-up play right from the start.
The Nerazzurri move as a unit, close down spaces, and ‘charge’ the opponent with the same intensity as a blitz, trying to immediately recover the ball or force an error. For Chivu, the parallel is not just a linguistic quirk: it is a way of conceiving football as a sport of strategy, synchrony, and immediate reaction. As in football, in Inter’s pressing the key is the speed of execution and the collective reading of the right moment to strike.
