Pioli: "It’s our duty to do everything we can to win the derby"

APPIANO GENTILE – Stefano Pioli insisted that Inter are prepared to do whatever it takes to win the Milan Derby on Saturday as he appeared at his pre-match press conference to preview the match.

"It’s our duty to do everything we can to win the derby," said the Nerazzurri boss on Thursday. "We’ve had an unexpected dip – we wanted the Crotone game to go differently but we’ve analysed it and we’ll do everything we can to ensure it doesn’t happen again. We can still determine our present and work for the future, showing that we’re a competitive side.

"We’ve had too bad halves. We lost our cool trying to turn the match around against Sampdoria and then our approach was wrong in the first half at Crotone. We have a chance to show that that’s not us and that we’re a team that can play expansive, intense football and win against the big teams."

Pioli also set out where Inter need to improve if they are to bounce back from successive league defeats.

"You need consistency to get to a certain standard," he admitted. "You can accept a few blips when you’re looking to grow. The most important thing is that we learn from these tough lessons and ensure this situation doesn’t happen again.

"We reacted in the second half against Crotone and we might have avoided defeat. I think the players have understood my approach during the week. After a game like Crotone I could have made all sorts of decisions – stick with the same 11 in order to give them a chance to redeem themselves or make sweeping changes. I still have two days left and we’re preparing well."

The Inter coach was keen to resist casting judgement on the Nerazzurri’s season before it comes to an end.

"The situation hasn’t changed that much from earlier in the season," he said. "There’s still some way to go – we have seven games left. The time to take stock is at the end of the season. We need to have a culture of hard work and a desire to improve and develop together.

"When you get negative results people look at the coach’s decisions and the fitness of the players. It’s not about running more than your opponents, it’s about running well – as a team. Fitness is great, but the real difference lies in how you use your brain.

"We’ve always had great team spirit. We’ve had two bad half matches but we still need to look to the future. We put the Crotone match behind us straight away – putting it right in such a huge match as the derby would be worth double.

"I know the people above us and I know the qualities they have. It would be fantastic to give something back to Suning by winning the derby."