Walter Zenga saved Inter again. His role has changed over the years. It’s a long time since the 58-year-old pulled up a pair of gloves for the Nerazzurri. But the effect is the same. Now a coach, the draw his Crotone side held Lazio to on Sunday keeps his former club’s Champions League dream alive. Not that he was celebrating. “Don’t talk to me about that,” Zenga said.
The result may have done Inter a favour but Crotone got none. Results elsewhere left the Pythagoreans in the relegation zone with a big problem. “Strangely the others all won,” Zenga provocatively observed. What on earth could he mean?
Crotone are in Naples next weekend and need to make the sign of the cross if they are to stay up. Inter, meanwhile, fly to Rome for what looked, until Sunday afternoon, to be a dead rubber. Suddenly, though, their game against Lazio was imbued with renewed significance and figures as a de facto Champions League play-off.
Lazio’s destiny is still in their hands. Standing two points taller than Inter in the table, the notes of the Champions League anthem are reaching their ears. Regret comes in the knowledge Lazio should already have this wrapped up. Don’t get them started on VAR. The league's top scorers have featured in the top four for 27 weeks of the season. Expectations have been exceeded but missing out on Champions League football this late in the day would be every bit as painful as those crazy four minutes against RB Salzburg in April.
A point is all Lazio need to re-appear in the Champions League group stage for the first time in 11 years, but this is a side that has a position to defend and knows they have something to lose - and that isn’t easy from a psychological perspective.
Inter, by contrast, have greater clarity of purpose. Anything less than a win will extend their exile from the Champions League and keep the handbrake on the club’s development plans for another year. This is their chance to make things right. A second and final chance that Inter did not expect to get.
Twists like that can alter a team’s mindset. In less than 24 hours Inter went from thinking it was Game Over to receiving a One Up and a new life. It must have re-energised the team, injecting them with a renewed sense of purpose. The momentum now seems to be with Inter, which is an odd thing to say when memories of them blowing it against Sassuolo last weekend are still so fresh. Luciano Spalletti called that game a “Champions League semi-final.” Somehow his team still find themselves playing a “final” despite that defeat. It’s a funny old game.
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In fairness, Inter didn’t play badly against Sassuolo. It can happen that a team catches you cold with a couple of outstanding goals. Of greater concern was how anxious Inter looked. The pressure seemed to get to them. We shouldn't forget, though, that this is exactly the kind of game Inter have struggled in this season. Almost all of their defeats have come against sides in the bottom half of the table. Sides you’d expect them to beat. The one exception is the rather controversial Derby d’Italia from a few weeks ago, when they were desperately unlucky not to get something.
Reviewing the season, what we find is Inter have played below average against the smaller teams and above it against the big boys. It should be considered a source of confidence to draw from ahead of the weekend.
Complicating matters as far as Lazio are concerned are injuries to key players. Top scorer Ciro Immobile is pulling out all the stops to be back, in part because the Italy international wants to stay ahead of Inter striker Mauro Icardi in the race for the Capocannoniere title. Luis Alberto is definitely out, which wouldn't have been an issue a year ago. The Spaniard was considered fringe player. But consider what he has become under Inzaghi. Alberto has scored 11 goals and set up another 14 for his teammates. No one boasts more assists in Serie A. He’ll be a big miss.
Bodies are breaking down after a long season. Lazio have played 54 games over the course of the current campaign; 15 more than Inter. Encouragingly for their fans, the Biancocelesti are unbeaten in their last 10 and the side’s character is prevailing over tiredness. However, the news that Inter have agreed to sign Lazio’s star centre-back Stefan de Vrij on a free transfer is some curveball and leaves Inzaghi in a difficult position.
Lazio sporting director Igli Tare is not best pleased that someone leaked the information to the press in the last week. He accused them of “playing dirty.” His opposite number at Inter, Piero Ausilio doesn’t see the problem. “The writing was on the wall for ages,” he said. Truth be told it has been one of the worst-kept secrets in football. But Inter couldn’t hang around. Time is of the essence particularly with in-demand free agents like De Vrij.
Still, you can understand Lazio’s grievances. Whoever briefed the news to the media that the paperwork has now been filed with the league must have known it would turn the spotlight on De Vrij and potentially unsettle him for the biggest game of the year. It’s an uncomfortable situation for all involved. All except Inter. If Inzaghi doesn’t consider De Vrij in the right frame of mind, he will not only lose the team's best defender, but a major threat from set-pieces too. The Dutchman has scored seven goals this season.
One can’t imagine De Vrij appreciates his professionalism being called into question either. This is a guy, after all, who is so meticulous in his preparation that he employs his own tactical analyst to go through clips of his own performances, not to mention break down the game of his opponents. You can see why Inter want a character like that in their team.
The big question, though, is will he be on Lazio’s this Sunday?
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