Inter, Inzaghi has 5 “mysteries”: Bellanova, Correa, Dumfries, Gosens and Skriniar

We need a detective, one of the good ones, preferably a football expert. A Sherlock Holmes capable of solving the “mysteries” that since yesterday the Interisti have no solution in mind. Without forgetting that less than a week ago, in Riyadh, the Nerazzurri lifted the first trophy of the season against Milan and that for the second consecutive season Inzaghi qualified for the Champions League round of 16, the team was already out of the league at the end of January Scudetto race and with some cases to be resolved quickly to hope to conquer at least one of the first four places in Serie A, make as far as possible in Europe and perhaps put another Italian Cup on the bulletin board after that of last May.

DUMFRIES, WHERE ARE YOU?

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Let’s start with him because last year, after an initial period of adaptation and the blunder that had cost the draw against Juventus, he hadn’t made Hakimi regret. He seemed to be the worthy heir of the Moroccan, bought for 12.5 million plus bonuses. All in all, a great deal. He got off to a good start this year too, with the decisive goal in Lecce, but then, game after game, he got lost. At times even dull: he struggled to combine the two phases, to get to the cross with precision, to score when he had the opportunity. Conditioned by the arrival of the World Cup? Maybe yes or maybe not. Because even when he came back from Qatar, it wasn’t him. Indeed, it was an even more faded version than the one that had left for Doha. Reason? At the World Cup he had an injury and struggled to heal. For weeks he was unable to push to the max in training and physically he was (and is) a step behind his teammates. That’s why Darmian took his place. However, it has a certain effect to see that last night, with the team in difficulty and in need of rebalancing, Inzaghi preferred to include Bellanova and not Denzel.

BELLANOVA ACERBO

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Premise: it’s a class of 2000 who is in his first season in a big club after 6 months (discreet) in a Cagliari that is relegated. Even last summer, when it was no coincidence that he arrived on loan with the right of redemption (not obligation), in viale della Liberazione it was clear that he could not be the savior of the country. Certainly, however, in the clips that he had at his disposal, Bellanova did not exalt. The leg and the physical means are not discussed, but it is the technique that seems to be lacking. He almost always uses his right foot and the opponents, who know him, send him towards the centre, where however he never goes. Last night he understood first-hand how hard it can be to play at the San Siro for a young player. And at the end of the fight he was one of those who wore the disappointment of the knockout on his face. Lukaku intervened to shake him and try to cheer him up. He cannot already be condemned or branded as a wrong purchase above all because in Serie A, with Inter, he played 10 pieces and was never a starter. Now, however, he too must give himself a shock. The potential has it.

IN SKRINIAR’S HEAD

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The detective would also be useful to understand what happened in Milan’s head. Not for the renewal issue: the Slovak preferred the money and the prospect of playing in the PSG shirt which aims to win the Champions League and has Mbappé, Messi, Neymar, Donnarumma in its squad… A legitimate choice, because the players are professionals , not “flags”: there have already been similar decisions in the past and there will be others in the future. More difficult to explain why he… fenced the game last night. Despite the “betrayal” that his agent, Roberto Sistici, awkwardly tried to justify by calling into question the club that put him on the transfer market (Brozovic, just to give an example, had almost been swapped with Tottenham, but renewed 3 months before the deadline…), he had almost everything on his side: chants, applause, captain’s armband and just a few shy whistles. Not enough to justify the two yellows in the space of 15′. Both deserved. Two interventions not like a true Skriniar. What went through his mind is unknown. It may have been his last time at the San Siro. Provided that PSG decide to buy him in this January window, instead of waiting to get him free next summer. His past at the Nerazzurri deserves / deserved another finish.

“LITTLE ROM”

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On Lukaku the mystery is less dense. It doesn’t take much to understand that physically he is not even a relative of the center forward who overwhelmed the opposing defenders in the year of Conte’s championship. His fault lies with the injuries that forced him to stop for a long time, to stay more on the physiotherapist’s bed than on the pitch to train. Big Rom in this respect he has few (indeed, zero) responsibilities: he is an exemplary professional and makes a living as a true athlete taking care of his body even at home, with a personal physiotherapist. Unfortunately, however, the numbers are not on his side. Neither the 7.6 million that Inter paid for his loan to Chelsea, nor the 8.5 million net plus 2 in bonuses that he receives as a salary. He had to make a difference. He had to be the extra man to win the second star. For now he has 8 appearances (only 4 from 1′) and 2 goals. At Inter he serves like air.

ENIGMA TUCU

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And then there’s Correa, the mystery of mysteries. Because even at Lazio he was “intermittent” and scored little to be a second striker (30 centers in 117 appearances), but he certainly had more impact. With plays, full-court flies and assists. At Pinetina, despite having a coach who dotes on him, he has hardly ever shone. In 59 games, the good ones may not reach double figures. And to think that he was paid, all inclusive, 33 million. It is also complicated to think of finding a buyer who does not oblige the company to make a capital loss. Now he has no market, unless you loan him out, which a club with accounts in the red cannot do. It hurts the fans to think that his failure to leave in the summer prevented Dybala from landing at Appiano. And if history repeats itself in 6 months with the free transfer Marcus Thuram…