“Results Aside, The Team Is There And They Almost Always Play Better Than Their Opponents”

It hasn’t been a smooth ride so far for Cristian Chivu at Inter Milan after taking over from Simone Inzaghi at the end of the 2024-25 season and less than 6 months into his reign, he has seen different spectrum of forms, from the highs to lows, earning praises and criticism together.

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Before tthe international break, they were unbeaten in Europe and joint top on the Serie A table but now, with two matches played after that, it looks like they’re in crisis mode again after losing to AC Milan in the Milan derby and to Atletico Madrid in the Champions League.

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Right now, they’re currently fourth in both the Serie A and Champions League table and are also just three points off the lead in both despite back-to-back losses and are sitting in a strong position in both competitions despite some encouraging performances in recent weeks.

Notwithstanding, there has been some criticism of Chivu and his team in the Italian press this week and even from legendary manager, Fabio Capello who pointed out one flaw that Chivu inherited from his predecessor but he also praised their performance in the two losses.

As for Jurgen Klinsmann and Paolo Di Canio, all is not lost as they analyzed the team. For Klinsmann, he insists that things are not as bad as some have made out and insisted that Chivu should not be judged on the number of defeats he has suffered which currently stands at five overall.

A common complaint Is Inter’s lack of victories in big matches this season, having fallen to defeats against Juventus, Napoli, Milan and Atletico already and while Corriere dello Sport described it as a ‘crisis of results’ but Klinsmann insists that there is still plenty for Inter to be positive about.

“I watched the derby in full, it made up for the Madrid game because I was commenting on Arsenal vs. Bayern and PSG vs. Tottenham on ESPN at the time. Results aside, it looks to me like the team is there,” Klinsmann said in an interview with Gazzetta dello Sport.

“They have clear ideas about how they want to attack, with numbers. The game against Atletico wasn’t too different to the one against Milan. Inter almost always play better than their opponents, they create chances, but are conceding goals after the restart or even worse, from set-pieces.”

The Inter legend also believes that Chivu is heading in the right direction as Inter coach. “You can see that he is building something good. He shouldn’t just be evaluated on the number of defeats, even if five seems like a lot. It’s close, looking at the Serie A standings.”

“They can fairly comfortably reach the Champions League top eight. It’s not that bad.” Klinsmann was also asked about Lautaro Martinez’s current struggle for goals. “I know what that feels like, when you give it your all but the ball just doesn’t go in,” he replied.

“It happened to him in the derby and in the Champions League, when he was taken off during the game. It might seem strange given his importance to the team, but it’s also a sign that Chivu isn’t afraid to make big calls. It’s right that he looked angry after being taken off, but the words ‘problem’ and ‘Lautaro’ don’t belong in the same sentence.”

“It starts from him, then Lautaro, but with Bonny and Pio too, they can take some of the responsibility.” He further added and for Di Canio, he believes that Inter are the closest of the Italian sides to winning the Champions League, but also feels that it is difficult for any Italian side to go the distance.

“I see Inter, Napoli and Milan in the top three places, but let’s see which order,” Di Canio said when asked for his early Serie A predictions in an interview with Repubblica, ruling out the current league leaders, Roma despite their two points lead at the top.

He continued: “I think it’s difficult for Italian teams in the Champions League, we’re lightyears away from the other top European clubs. Inter are the best equipped, but too many things didn’t work in Madrid.” He further added in the interview,referring to the 2-1 UCL loss on Wednesday.

Di Canio went on to list some of the issues that Chivu needs to address. “Luck, or bad luck, doesn’t exist. Chivu has to get those sorts of excuses out of his players’ minds. If you hit the post, it’s because you didn’t shoot well enough.” And what does he feel that this current Nerazzurri side are missing?

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“Hunger and that wickedness. Calhanoglu loses the ball and doesn’t recover. They need a Maldini, a Vialli on the pitch. Lautaro coming off shaking his head isn’t a good sign. Bonny looks to be in better shape than Thuuram. Chivu needs to have the courage to talk about changing the hierarchies.” He concluded.