Inzaghi: "We still need to improve but it’s a pleasure to watch this team play"

MILAN – Inter fully deserved to finally get three points on the board in the 2021/22 UEFA Champions League at the third time of asking, as the Nerazzurri beat Sheriff Tiraspol 3-1 in Group D at San Siro. After Edin Dzeko’s stunning opener was temporarily cancelled out by Sebastien Thill, it was Arturo Vidal and Stefan de Vrij who clinched victory for Simone Inzaghi’s side.

“We produced the sort of performance that we needed,” stated the boss after the game. “They came here on a high and we knew it would be a tough game, but we played as a team and created so much, hitting the post twice and bar once in addition to scoring three goals. We played some great football and we just need to understand when it’s not the time to make mistakes because we were on the wrong end of a few too many counter-attacks.

“There’s so much work to do, but it’s a pleasure to watch this team play. It was the same when we lost against Real Madrid and Lazio. It’s a joy to have so many fans back at the stadium. They’re an extra weapon for us, particularly considering we’ve played so many away games so far. 

“We’re getting all of our players back and that’s key because you need everyone when you’re playing every three days.

“We must improve in terms of letting other teams have so many dangerous counter-attacks against us. We have to do better technically because they had four or five very menacing situations. We know we need to improve in that regard and we’re working on it. We didn’t score that many based on what we’d created.

“Arturo Vidal trains with the excitement of a young boy. He always wants to be available and he adds so much to the team. Despite Sanchez and him getting back in the early hours of Saturday morning, they made themselves available for the trip to Rome, but I opted to rest them because I knew they’d be important this evening, and so it proved.”