Social media immediately launched an assault with the weapon of irony, after all Spezia is in fact the anagram of spieze Of all the criticisms that can be leveled at Simone Inzaghiin the aftermath of the umpteenth late night of his Inter away from San Siro, the latest is that he has looked for excuses. On the contrary, in a game that would be difficult to comment on alone, the Piacenza coach assumed responsibility and did the only thing possible: look ahead. That is at the Port. But one step at a time.
One more defeat. Meanwhile, let’s start again from the triple whistle: the 2-1 at the Picco sanctioned the Nerazzurri’s sixth away debacle. As we said a few lines above, taken by itself the match wouldn’t be a disaster: Inter didn’t deserve to lose due to what they did on the pitch, it happened due to sensational individual mistakes. Of Lautaro, of Acerbi, also of Dumfries who had just rekindled the flame of hope. The problem is that it has to be included in the championship path and Beneamata, first in the standings at the Meazza, makes up for one bad impression after another away from home.
A 2023 horror. In the new year, away: two defeats, two draws, one victory. There are lower ranked teams that have done better. How to explain this performance? Fragility of character? Technical limitations? We will return to the latter, as for the first hypothesis it is understandable that the missteps fuel doubts, but the group is not very different from the one that only two years ago, under Conte’s military discipline, crushed the championship. Conversely, Inter today went from -8 compared to Napoli after the first match of the year to having questioned their qualification in the Champions League. A risk that no one can afford, in Inter Milan, and now damned real.
The knots come home to roost. On the technical limits, we can discuss. For many, even for Semplici who has just beaten them, the Inter squad is among the best, perhaps the best, in the championship. Since we were talking about the potential criticisms of Inzaghi, we return to that of plan B. An aspect that became even more evident in the confused assault on the white weapon of La Spezia. Despite having dominated the game, the Nerazzurri didn’t find the net, also because they stubbornly pursued him in the only way they know how. The desperate 3-4-3 tried in the final was a confused and impromptu attempt. Acceptable in the economy of a game, less in that of a season during which the variations on the theme have always been almost nil. With the result that Inter is a team, for better or for worse, always equal to itself: if they guess the day there is none for anyone, otherwise they crash and lack lateral thinking to get around the obstacle . And then, the coach himself often reminds us, it’s a matter of choices: throwing the cross at Lautaro for a missed penalty is wrong, but too often the hierarchies of Inter – from the wing onwards – vary from time to time.
Inzaghi and 90 decisive minutes. Champions at risk, ups and downs of results, limited tactical solutions. The table is set, after a bad night as Inzaghi had predicted, for the most bitter ending. The contract until 2025, freshly renewed, protects up to a certain point the position of a coach on whom drafts have been wasted since the beginning of the season. Sometimes magnified, others less. Arrived at the redde rationem, only the Champions League can build a happy ending. The one to take in the championship, but above all the one up for grabs on Tuesday at Dragao against Porto. Inzaghi is the coach who brought Inter back to these levels after a decade, the quarter-finals – and once they get there who knows – are the card, perhaps the only one because the Coppa Italia can be displayed on the bulletin board but has the weight he has, which he can play to defend his Nerazzurri future. The alternatives? It’s still early to think about it, but from the new advances (Thiago Motta more than Roberto De Zerbi) to the sensational returns (Conte or Mourinho) there is certainly no shortage.
