Inter coach Antonio Conte discussed the Nerazzurri’s tough 1-1 draw against Atalanta last night in an interview with Italian broadcaster DAZN.
First, the 50-year-old Italian coach touched on the reported interest of Inter in Barcelona midfielder Arturo Vidal.
“You know very well I don’t talk about players not at Inter, there are those who do it for work and it’s right that they should talk.”
He then spoke about Inter’s performance in last night’s game.
“We played the match without four key players, and for us this means a lot against a team that has physical strength and intensity. We held our own, Atalanta finished ahead of us last year but now we’ve got eleven more points, it shows we’re doing something extraordinary. Today we did everything we could to win.”
The former Juventus and Chelsea coach also spoke about where the team still needs to improve.
“We’re talking about exceptional guys, the only thing I ask is that I hope we don’t have defections because every time we lose a couple of players the situation becomes problematic. Today we had Barella disqualified and Vecino with a calf strain and we were very limited in midfield.”
“We want to recover Sanchez to get him back in the best possible condition, we’re getting everything we can in a difficult situation. Then you see the standings, you see that you’re there and you close your eyes to a lot of issues. I always pray that everyone is there, but injuries and disqualifications are there and so the squad list gets too limited.”
“We go ahead and try to give our best, like tonight where we gave our all against a team that has been working with the same coach for four years and has taken specific players for his idea of football. We’ve been working together for six months, but to be 11 points ahead of them is really cool.”
Conte was positive about the return of Italian midfielder Stefano Sensi.
“Sure, but he has to play to regain his condition. I’m happy because he played 70 minutes in a very physical game, we saw a very important player.”
“Slowly he’ll come back to full strength and the Sensi we knew at the beginning will come back. Then Nicolò Barella came back too. We have to work because the league table must not be deceiving.”
Finally, Conte discussed the draw against Atalanta a little more.
“Against Atalanta it’s difficult, they played with a very high intensity. They have this style now, they are a strong team with a strong squad that has been improved over the years with specific players for the idea and the desire to play football.”
“We started a path and we find ourselves there, it’s very good of us to have 46 points but we have to be very realistic because there is a path to continue down. But the guys are to be praised for their work, and I think the fans are understanding that.”
