Inter, that’s not the case: waste, bad luck, nervousness and tired key men

The involution of Inter is now official. The ugly 0-0 of Marassi does not even carry the excuse of the fatigue of the Champions League, the miracles of Consiglio and the mistakes under the goal from Gialappa’s. This time, a Genoa as proud as it was poised was enough to stop the Italian champions. And more than for the lack of contact at the top of Milan, Inzaghi must worry because in addition to the old anger (the counter-proof is missing, but with the Conte hammer probably the three-point flicker would have somehow arrived) the cleanliness and the airiness of a game that had convinced everyone until mid-January.

Numbers and faults

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And this time there is little to blame Lautaro, who remained on the bench for 73 ‘. Only time will tell if it is a psychophysical bending or the countermeasures adopted by the opponents by dint of playing in the same way: Brozovic asphyxiated, jumpers to limit anti-aircraft, double on the flanks to stop Dumfries and Perisic. However, in the meantime, the figures say that Inter have not scored in three games (including the Champions League), in the league they have not won for four (it had not happened since February 2018, when Spalletti reached 8), they have scored the misery of 6 goals in the seven games of the return – after an average of 2.6 goals in the first leg -, is nervous, risks something behind (Handanovic thanks Gudmundsson) and pays for the evident decline of key men like Barella – unrecognizable, with opponents skidding as he usually does – and Calhanoglu. Relative surprise, given that they have almost always played the same players for months. Certainly with the mogie mezzali the whole maneuver suffers.

Iella and spark

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On these not very comforting bases, then there is also a pinch of jinx, in the form of D’Ambrosio’s internal crossbar; of 14 angles (to zero) without ever finding that tail that he had often solved in the past; of those 53 conclusions without inflating the net after Dzeko’s flash in Naples. Inzaghi after the race made it clear that no upheavals or changes of form are on the horizon. We need to work even more, but also to load a troop who, by dint of saying “let’s win the next one”, risks giving rise to some doubts. In short, he is urgent to rekindle the spark with a heavy victory. Tuesday is the match against Milan which opened the Nerazzurri crisis on 5 February. The ideal opportunity to close a circle. And go back to opening the opponent’s door.