Handanovic, 300 appearances and a win: "I want to improve every year"

MILAN – It wasn’t just any other game for Samir Handanovic. The Nerazzurri goalkeeper and captain celebrated his 300th appearance in the Inter shirt with a win in a match where he played a vital role. He produced some fantastic saves which stopped Lazio in their tracks and allowed Inter to emerge victorious for the fifth consecutive match. Handanovic has now surpassed Julio Cesar in terms of matches played, with only two goalkeepers having turned out more times for Inter than Samir: Walter Zenga and Ivano Bordon.

After the match the Slovenian spoke to Sky Sport and Inter TV: “Today’s game was tough, Lazio are an excellent side. We had to dig in in the first half and should have killed off the match earlier. We had a number of opportunities in the second half but the win is the most important thing. Defence begins from the forward line: in the second half, we pressed better and performed better as a unit.”

Inter have conceded one goal in five games: "In Italy the teams that concede the fewest goals win, we need to continue on this path. I feel like I’m improving every season I play, I don’t set myself limits. For as long as a player thinks that they can improve, they shouldn’t stop playing. I will stop when I think that it won’t be possible for me to improve. We had to dig in today to get the win, which is why it was really important.

“The league is very balanced. It’s important that we’ve picked up three points but we need to work to correct the mistakes we made today. We also need to recuperate immediately for Saturday’s game in Genoa.”