Inter Milan coach Simone Inzaghi managed to score “the perfect coup” with his approach against Arsenal in the Champions League.
Today’s print edition of Milan-based newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport, via FCInterNews, hail the Nerazzurri coach’s successful decision to make changes to his starting eleven.
There were some big names on the bench for Inter at the start of yesterday’s Champions League clash with Arsenal.
None of Federico Dimarco, Alessandro Bastoni, Francesco Acerbi, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Nicolo Barella, or Marcus Thuram started for the Nerazzurri.
The motivation for this appeared to be clear from Inter’s coach.
Inzaghi wanted to keep certain key players fresh for the team’s match on the weekend.
On Sunday, Inter face Napoli in a top-of-the-table Serie A match. They have a chance to overtake the Partenopei at the top if they are to win.
Inzaghi Scores “The Perfect Coup” As Inter Beat Arsenal In Champions League
There was naturally a risk that leaving out too many key players would result in a disjointed-looking team from Inter.
Particularly facing opposition of the quality of Arsenal.
But the pitch ended up telling a different story.
In the first half, the Nerazzurri came out very aggressively, pushing into Arsenal’s half with a high tempo.
As the half wore on, it became a less frenetic, more even contest.
Inter won a penalty right at the end of the first half. And midfielder Hakan Calhanoglu converted it as always, on his first start since coming back from a thigh injury.
Inter held out defensively in the second half.
A number of the big names did come on as substitutes to help Inter see out the victory.
So now Inter are in a very strong position to qualify directly for the Champions League round of sixteen.
And some important players have managed to stay relatively fresh for Inter’s clash with Napoli on Sunday.
That’s no guarantee of any result, of course.
