When Inter raise their level, they really do it

Inter’s performance this season is Dr. Jekyll (in the cups) and (Mr Hyde) in the league as the Gazzetta dello Sport defines it today almost a sporting paradoxbased on surreal figures such as the 10 accumulated losses in the league (more than one in three) and the 2 out of 13 won in other competitions (about one in seven). But it is not the first case of a team in the cup format that competes in the league and shines with national and international knockout titles. But then it’s a performance, Inter’s in Europe, that doesn’t even surprise us too much.

In the past we have received a lot of criticism for writing that the Nerzzurri – skipped the feat of Napoli, which is easy this year outside of – had the most complete and best-built Serie A squad, or at least the one with the greatest “specific weight”: significantly stronger than Milan, decidedly better positioned than Juventus, with a defined formation and a pair of (excellent) players for each role. That’s why we wrote that among the Italians in Europe, Inter were the best placed to raise the bar thanks to the level and weight of their players.

He proved it yesterday by playing a “serious game,” Boban’s copyright to define the great plays of strong teams. And noting that the There is a difference with Benficaand it’s not just about the value of the Transfermarkt squad (313 million in Lusitanian, 534 in Italian).

But the numbers, especially those of the economic projection, count up to a point. The real ones count more and these were the ones that frightened: Benfica had scored consistently in the last 13 Champions Leagues, averaging 2.5 goals per game; He had not never lost in Europe, first in the group of Juventus and PSG; They had never lost at home all season, before a 2-1 league draw with Porto five days ago – where however the lead over second was already assured (+10 points) and thoughts inevitably turned to the game against Inter.

In short, Benfica was one of the clubs with the best numbers in Europeat home and abroad. There was talk of his coach and his players, the born-again and those on the launch pad, and most of all there was talk of the quality of his game. With da Luz, however, we saw little or none of all this: the Portuguese proved a real disappointment technically, tactically and physically and, as always in these cases, it’s difficult to understand how far one’s mistakes go and where they begin the merits of others. What is certain is that Inter managed to wrap, clamp and defuse until they almost eliminated the hosts.

An Inter with a great personality, capable of managing the game and its moments, with individuals capable of raising the level when the going gets tough and the ball gets heavy. Starting from an essentially perfect back block with Bastoni in a star assistman version, an impressive Acerbi and a great Darmian, a guarantee of reliability (and success) to continue with a super midfielder made up of Barella’s overall performance and those of quality but there are also victims, from Mhkytarian and Brozovic. But they are the collective effort The Spirit and attention to have made a difference. As Paolo Tomasselli writes in Corriere della Sera:

“a team smart And brave At the same time, he’s able to keep the center of gravity high without ever losing attention, quickly closing the overtaking lines and striking with the restarts.” With Vernazza in the Gazzetta that defined it”an inter of struggle and government“.

For his part, Simone Inzaghi made it clear to us: «I work for the good of Inter, it’s not my revenge»; yet it becomes inevitable. Yes, because Inter are underperforming (and even strong) in LaLiga and above average in Europe, which on the one hand reflects their coach’s “Copetero” profile the soul itself, mad and capable of anything, Nerazzurri: a soul that feeds on the highest peaks and thunderous falls, on unexpected conquests and incomparable masochisms. As he said Fabio Capello in the aftermath:

“When I’m the coach, I go into the dressing room and say: Congratulations guys. However… You get into my nerv! Why didn’t you always play like this? Why didn’t you sacrifice yourselves? Well done but guys we gave away point after point…”

Oh why… For that Nerazzurri youthful soul, living by the absolute and the whole, incapable of half measures, able to shine when she sees Barcelona,​​Naples, Benfica and switch off when she goes to La Spezia, Bologna or Salerno drives. A soul so to speak at the antipodes compared to the cynically solid Juventus, and that it was no coincidence that Antonio Conte had tried to change. If Juventus crush you like a boa constrictor when they catch you until you run out of air, Inter are capable of performing the most grandiose and spectacular hunt in the savanna only to then run the prey like a game.

It’s in the DNA of the club and that’s also part of the fascination with football, supporters and fan. However, for that, and the Nerazzurri fans know that, we have to be careful when returning: because Inter is not Juventus, and because Anything can happen at Inter. Nothing has been decided yet, nothing has been written yet. But last night in Lisbon we saw a strong team, stronger than the others. A team capable of raising the level whenever it wants and going head-to-head with the best in the world. Should he overcome the obstacle of return, anything could happen: never set limits to providence and, above all, to madness.