Simone Inzaghi admits Inter were far too wasteful in the hard-fought 1-0 win over Venezia and ‘anything’ could’ve happened at the end, but his focus now is on Arsenal rather than Napoli.
The Nerazzurri found it considerably tougher than expected against relegation battlers Venezia, mainly because they wasted so many clear-cut scoring opportunities, above all with Marcus Thuram and Hakan Calhanoglu.
Lautaro Martinez finally found the breakthrough with a cushioned header on Federico Dimarco’s cross, his first Serie A goal at San Siro in eight months, but there was still time for a huge scare.
Marin Sverko had equalised for Venezia with the last kick of the game, then disallowed by VAR for handball.
“We should’ve been more clinical, but to be honest I congratulated the team because the first half was excellent and we wasted big opportunities with Mkhitaryan and Thuram. I think it would’ve been an easier game for us if we had taken one of those,” Inzaghi told DAZN.
“After the break, also with the changes made by Venezia, we lost our shape a little bit and started to concede chances too. Once we broke the deadlock, the big regret is that we didn’t kill off the game and when it is in the balance, anything can still happen.
“Along with the handball, there was also a push on Bisseck. We should nonetheless have been more clinical, because you cannot leave the game open like that against an impressive Venezia side.”
Inzaghi keeps focus on Arsenal before Napoli
MILAN, ITALY – NOVEMBER 03: Lautaro Martinez of FC Internazionale interacts with Simone Inzaghi, Head Coach of FC Internazionale, as he is substituted off during the Serie A match between FC Internazionale and Venezia at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza on November 03, 2024 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)
Inter now move within a point of leaders Napoli ahead of next weekend’s showdown, but before that they have a huge Champions League clash with Arsenal, so squad rotation is going to be essential.
Antonio Conte argued today that the Partenopei cannot compete with Inter or even Atalanta in terms of squad depth in the title race.
“These are all strong teams who invested a lot of money in the summer to reinforce, including Inter, who brought in important players to give us a big hand. It will be a very balanced campaign, we are all crammed up there in a few points and games like this can make the difference,” replied Inzaghi.
“This is our fifth game in two weeks, there are another two to come against Arsenal and Napoli, but we’ve got Calhanoglu back and Acerbi will be available on Wednesday too. Carlos Augusto is the only one still out and as a coach I will need everyone.”
Inzaghi was asked if the clash between first and second in the Serie A table will represent a turning point in the Scudetto race.
“I don’t see it being a turning point. It is important yes, but in two days we are up against one of the best teams in Europe with huge quality, so clearly my focus right now is on Arsenal,” concluded the coach.
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