Before the 22/23 season, Serie A wasn’t a household name in a lot of people’s mouths…… You’d think, with the likes of powerhouse teams such as Juventus and AC Milan that there would be more popularity pertaining how many people tune in to watch Serie A matches on a weekly. But, due to their lack of consistent performances within the Champions league over the last decade, as well as the ever increasing popularity of the Barclay’s Premier League, Serie A is now simply a league that is only being viewed for highlights rather than for watching a full 90 minute match. But all that changed with the Champions league Quarter final draw in March of 2023 where Inter Milan ( who today’s episode is all about), AC Milan, and Napoli were all drawn on the same side of the draw which meant that one of those clubs would be going all the way to this year’s final. Based on the overall performance of each within the league many would’ve bet their house on Napoli being the team representing the Bel Paese, but instead it was the Nazzuri, who overcame Benfica and then bitter rivals AC Milan to reach their first final since 2010 (a final that they won I might add). In today’s episode, we will be taking a look into the tactics that have earned them a spot against Manchester City on June 10th as well as their tactical set up that they used throughout the entirety of the 22/23 season. Let’s get things going, shall we?
Normally, when a team is using the 3-5-2, the M(C) who is in the centre would be slightly deeper than the rest. But since Hakan Calhanoglu isn’t the best defensively, he plays inline with his midfield compatriots in order to maintain a flat line which allows them to share the responsibilities in the defensive phase more effectivelyFrom defence to attack, I absolutely love the set up and balance of this Inter team. Onana is a brilliant on the ball keeper which allows them to start play from the back at times, the 3 in front of him are all top class defenders with Acerbi and De Vrij being able to pick a proper pass, while Bastoni is arguably the best young defender in the world right now. The Midfield 3 have everything except a real defensive presence but that is negated due to their exceptional workrate combined in addition to their positional awareness and in Dumfries and DiMarco, Inter possess 2 very attack minded Wingbacks who are always a threat and similar to Hakimi and Mendes, work like dogs with their insane levels of workrate. We would normally see the strike duo of Lautaro and Lukaku upfront but Rom has been injured for most of the season, so Dzeko has filled in and boy has he been spectacular! With Lautaro dropping deep and linking the play, Dzeko simply stays high up the pitch using his fantastic hold up and aerial abilities allowing the likes of Mkhitaryan and Barella to get closer to him and cause havoc with some well times late runs in and around the attacking third. This X1 is no joke!
STRATEGY
With everything I said above, it should be put into perspective that this Inter team is all about defence first before anything else. Therefore, there major strategy will rely on soaking up as much pressure as possible then hitting teams on the break
INSTRUCTIONS
With Hakan on the dead balls anything is possible…
GENERAL
Inter are all about discipline, robustness, and resilience. So these general tactics suit them quite well 👌
ATTACK
Although I’ve mentioned how important the defensive structure is to them, they still have some ballers within the team which allow them to mix things up when in possession. When they get into the attacking third however, they do not aim to patiently break down their opposition. Instead, they seek to use the strength of their target man and get as many balls into the box as they possibly can.
DEFENDING
It’s all about the structure of the entire X1 so they aim to make it as difficult as possible to break them down
If there is a common theme when it comes to Italian teams is that they are extremely organized and make it quite difficult for their opposition to break them down. And with the likes of Barella, Dumfries, Calhanoglu, Lautaro and Dzeko, this Inter team have all the right combinations required to cause Manchester City a lot of problems come the Champions league final. Let’s see how they get on as they will be considered the darkest of Dark Horses on that evening.
Thank you for reading soccermanagerite. If you’re interested in joining a group of like minded soccermanager experts and tacticians, then click the link below. We will be looking at 5 other clubs tactics within SM23 starting from next week Monday. Until then, have a great weekend, stay safe and stay tactical! 😉✌️🚶
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