Inzaghi primed for 'decisive' showdown with Sheriff

TIRASPOL – Simone Inzaghi insists nothing less than a win will do for Inter when they face off against Sheriff Tiraspol in Wednesday's Champions League Matchday 4 clash.

The Nerazzurri head into the game after beating this season's surprise package 3-1 at San Siro last time out but the boss believes they will need a repeat display if they are to advance to the knockout stage of the competition.

Read what Inzaghi had to say at the pre-match press conference on Tuesday.

Do you see Sunday's win against Udinese as a demonstration of what those who have been playing less can do?

"We're coming off the back of two very good performances against Empoli and Udinese – two tricky matches that we made look easy. We were solid and restricted our opponents to very few chances. When you rotate the team and keep winning games, that's the best thing you can ask for as a coach. Now we have a very important, decisive match tomorrow. We have to show what we can do in Europe too.”

You won the reverse fixture against Sheriff. Was that the psychological boost you needed to give the team more belief in the Champions League? 

“The last game was no more or less decisive than the one we have to play tomorrow. We played some excellent football at San Siro but we also saw the threat Sheriff pose – they didn't beat Real and Shakhtar through luck. We must stay fully focused and keep our shape throughout. Sheriff have shown how dangerous they can be on the counter.”

What would winning this game mean in terms of the group standings?

“It's crucial. We knew from the start that we'd need to take maximum points from these two meetings with Sheriff. All our thoughts are on this game. We have another important match for the fans and the club coming up on Sunday but right now we're thinking of nothing but the Champions League.”

Why did you to train in Appiano and not Tiraspol today?

“We trained in Appiano and left after lunch. There's an excellent set-up here: the pitch is in great condition.”

Now that the team seem to have got their balance right, is the next thing to work on being more clinical in front of goal?

“We have the best attack in Serie A. We like to attack and create scoring chances. We had lots of shots on goal against Udinese. That's the way forward – creating lots of chances without losing our shape.”