Inter Milan are one of, if not the most functional club in European football, both on and off the pitch. Since Simone Inzaghi took over from Antonio Conte as Inter’s head coach in 2021, Inter continue to be a well-drilled side, maximising the qualities of players in their designated roles, whilst also having completed a number of astute signings for little to no money, highlighting their competence in the transfer market.
Last season saw Inter finish third in Serie A, win Coppa Italia, and reach the Champions League final for the first time since 2010, where they narrowly lost 1-0 to Manchester City. Now, as we have passed the halfway point of the current campaign, Inter are once again cruising at the top of Serie A, and are set to face Atletico Madrid in the round of 16 of the Champions League.
Having last won the Scudetto with Conte in 2021, Inzaghi will be looking to reclaim it with his own Inter side this time around, having missed out in his first two seasons. Inter are in a good place to do so, with a squad that has good tactical acumen, and has been built and rebuilt via effective strategy in the transfer market over the course of the past three seasons.
Inzaghi’s appointment began with a series of key departures, leaving gaps in the squad that were quickly refilled, fulfilling certain criteria. This in itself has become a regular feature of Inter’s activity in the summer period.
In the summer of 2021, Inter sold Matteo Politano to Napoli for £17.96m, Antonio Candreva to Sampdoria for £2.14m, whereas Ashley Young, Joao Mario, and Radja Nainggolan were all moved on to new clubs for no fee at all. Even more significant, however, were the sales of both wing-back Achraf Hakimi to Paris Saint-German, and centre-forward Romelu Lukaku to Chelsea. Although earning a combined £148.8m, both were massive losses; they were the side’s two key players in the title success of the season prior.
Nevertheless, Inter swiftly replaced Hakimi with Dutch international Denzel Dumfries from PSV Eindhoven for £10.26m and replaced Lukaku with the experienced Edin Dzeko from Roma. Lukaku was sold for the best part of £100m, and Inter spent none of that on the centre-forward who would replace him, and take his #9 shirt.
Matteo Darmian was also brought in from Parma on a permanent deal after spending the previous season on loan. Darmian can play as a wing-back and as part of a back three, and has since had his career revitalised, after it stagnated at Manchester United. And from arch rivals, AC Milan, of all teams, came midfield playmaker Hakan Calhanoglu, also for free.
Last season, Andre Onana signed from Ajax for free. The goalkeeper, who is excellent with the ball at his feet, enjoyed a brilliant debut season with Inter, before eventually being sold for huge profit. Wing-back Robin Gosens signed from Atalanta for £12.83m, but in fairness, couldn’t make the spot on the left side his own. Gosens has since moved Union Berlin in the Bundesliga. Inter went on to make another acquisition for no money from Roma, as Henrikh Mkhitaryan was signed to bolster the midfield. Joaquin Correa was singed from Lazio for £21.38m, following a promising loan spell, whilst Lukaku returned on loan after an underwhelming return to English football.
Embed from Getty ImagesFormer mainstay wing-back/winger Ivan Perisic, who starred in the Coppa Italia final, which Inter won 2-4 against Juventus, left for Tottenham Hotspur. His place was taken not by Gosens, but instead by Federico Dimarco.
More changes were made to the squad amidst the start of this ongoing season. Onana’s form between the posts landed him a lucrative £43.8m move to Manchester United, in order to replace the outgoing David de Gea. Here and there, Onana has shown glimpses of why Erik ten hag wanted to sing him, but Onana has come under a lot of scrutiny, mostly due to his form in the Champions league, which United swiftly exited in the group stages.
Inter may have lost their first-choice goalkeeper, but he was replaced with ease, as Yann Sommer was signed from Bayern Munich for a modest £5.34m.
Although a different profile of goalkeeper, Sommer is still one of high a quality, and was bought for only a fraction of the money that Onana was sold for. As it stands, Sommer has the highest number of clean sheets in Serie A this season, with 15 from 24 games, and according to fbref.com, has a PSxG-GA (Post-Shot Expected Goals minus Goals Allowed) of +4.7, which means that either Sommer is very lucky, or is an above average shot stopper. Whilst Inter are a side who do not give away too many chances to the opposition, Sommer regularly makes saves when the opposition find themselves in front of goal.
Embed from Getty ImagesBoth Lukaku (loan ended) and Dzeko departed, with Lukaku making his way to Roma. This meant inter needed to once again delve into the market to find a centre-forward. Inter made the smart choice to sign Marcus Thuram from Borussia Monchengladbach. It was again a player Inter sought after for free. Another profile that benefits Lautaro Martinez, Thuram has settled in well, approaching double figures in both goals and assists.
Holding midifelder Marcelo Brozović was sold to Al Nassr. But instead of bringing in a new replacement to dictate play from deeper positions, Calhanoglu moved from playing as one of the side midfielders, to playing as the ‘regista’ in Inter’s 3-5-2, and has excelled in doing so.
Embed from Getty ImagesExcluding the signgin of Benjamin Pavard from Bayern Munich, which saw Inter splurge £26.65m, Inter’s acquisitions were all made for £8.55m or less, including Kristjan Asslani, Juan Cuadrado, and Tajon Buchanan from Club Brugge, whom Inter signed in January, as well as Marco Arnautovic, Carlos Augusto, and David Frattesi, who were all signed on loan.
The transfer activity since 2021 shows Inter to be a side competent at quickly securing replacements for outgoing transfers whom were sold for a large profit, and doing so for little to no money. Players are also brought in for smaller loan fees, and of they end up being a good fit, are signed on a permanent basis afterwards.
These players may not necessarily be world beaters, which perhaps is why Inter can often reel them in for next to nothing, but they are very good players, whose qualities are maximised by the coaching and system laid out by Inzaghi. If you are another club playing in premier European competition, It may be worth adopting a similar approach to recruiting players to strengthen their own squads.
Inter’s free transfers, 2021 onwards
- Alex Cordaz – goalkeeper, from Crotone
- Edin Dzeko – forward, from Roma
- Hakan Calhanoglu – midfielder, from AC Milan
- Andre Onana – goalkeeper, from Ajax
- Henrikh Mkhitaryan – midfielder, from Roma
- Marcus Thuram – forward, from Borussia Monchengladbach
- Juan Cuadrado – defender/midfielder, from Juventus
- Alexis Sanchez – forward, from Marseille
And according to reports, Inter are set to secure Medhi Taremi and Piotr Zielinski on free transfers. Both would be set to arrive in June amidst the start of next season. Both are experienced, and would offer Inter further depth. Taremi is another striker who likes to operate in deeper positions, and was previously linked with Manchester United, while Zielinski is a midfield schemer who played a crucial part in Napoli’s success last season.
If Zielinksi was to complete a move to Inter, it would be yet another case of the biggest clubs in Italy doing business amongst each other, which is a situation far more common there than it is in England. Recently Chelsea have sold a number of their players to rivals; both Manchester clubs and Arsenal have signed players, but historically, this is far more common in Italy.
Inter continue to have a balanced, strong squad, that is giving them an equally strong chance of winning the title, and even progressing in Europe much like they did last season, with seasoned mainstays, and the new signings being embedded into the team.
With regards to the system maximising said players, Inzaghi is building on what Conte did before, but perhaps with even more efficiency, and getting even more out of the players at his disposal through his coaching.
Consistently set-up in a 3-5-2, Inter defend compactly, and do not commit an overly high line, but they do like to regain the ball quickly, be that when the opposing side are trying to build through the thirds, or in attack in transition. Inter press in numbers, and try to close down space to play passes. The midfielders will support the wing-backs and centre-backs by tracking back and closing space down on the side in which the ball is located.
Inter do in turn enjoy a large number of chances when they have the ball. This season in Serie A, Inter create 28.21 shot creating actions per 90, the second highest behind Napoli, and being a side that creates a lot of chances via attacks down flanks, they average 3.42 crosses into the penalty-area per 90 – the league’s highest. And these are not simply chances that go unconverted; Inter are so far the league’s top scorers, with 59 goals.
Inter seemingly like to build up from deeper positions, in an attempt to draw out the opposing sides press, so that passes can be played to those making runs into advanced areas further forward. And essential to this is the positioning of the wider centre-backs, and Calhanoglu. The centre-backs pull wide in build-up, which allows the wing-backs to push further forweard, or make longer runs from deep and into the final-third. .
Calhanoglu is clever positionally with and without the ball. Specifically with it, he Calhanoglu moves into spaces away from opposition cover shadows to receive the ball. He is composed on the ball and attracts the opposing press where Inter try to build from their own half, and has the vision and technique to pick out and play longer passes to runners.
The receiver of that long ball, Dimarco, completes the most crosses into the penalty area amongst all players in Serie A, with 1.61 per 90. He makes runs from deeper positions, and also receives layoffs from a midfielder or forward, before crossing the ball into the box. Inter’s wing-backs push high up the pitch in build-up. They also send a variety of crosses towards targets in the box, ranging from cut backs, crosses to the near post, and lofted deliveries to the far post that can either be attacked, or knocked down by the target.
The midfield is balanced, with Barella in particular noted for his marauding runs into the final-third, and exchanging positions with the wing-back when the latter is in an advanced position. And as for attack, Thuram and Martinez complement each other. Martinez likes to drop deep, receive the ball to feet, where he can turn and have space in front of him to either play a pass forward, carry the ball closer to goal, or even shoot from distance. Thuram is mobile, uses his physicality well both in and outside of the box, and likes to make runs towards the near post, from where he can latch onto low crosses delivered by the wing-backs.
Inter are one of the best run clubs in European football, and although they last won the title in 2021, they have been consistent in the past two to three years, even improving their record in their recent Champions League history. They are in a good place to regain the Series A this time around.
Sources: Serie A, http://www.fbref.com, http://www.transfermarkt.com., http://www.bbcsport.co.uk, http://www.guardian.com
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