Inzaghi: ‘What Inter are doing is not enough’ especially in big games after 1-0 defeat

TURIN, ITALY – FEBRUARY 16: Simone Inzaghi, Head Coach of FC Internazionale, reacts during the Serie A match between Juventus and FC Internazionale at Allianz Stadium on February 16, 2025 in Turin, Italy. (Photo by Valerio Pennicino/Getty Images)

Simone Inzaghi admits Inter ‘regret and disappointment’ at not taking their chances in the defeat to Juventus, but above all must improve in the big games. ‘What we are doing is not enough.’

The Nerazzurri knew that a victory here would see them leapfrog Napoli and become the new Serie A leaders, while they also had the advantage of a full week to prepare for this match, having avoided the Champions League play-offs.

However, after Denzel Dumfries hit the woodwork in the first half and there were big saves at both ends, Juve seemed sharper as the game wore on and won it with a Francisco Conceicao sweep into the far bottom corner after a great move from Randal Kolo Muani.

“There is regret and disappointment, but the lads played really well with courage, organisation and we should’ve finished our scoring opportunities better. We really should’ve gone into the break 1-0 up,” Inzaghi told DAZN.

“We didn’t start the second half with the same approach, then once we started creating chances again, we conceded that goal from Conceicao. Evidently we need to avoid proclamations, we just have to keep working even harder, because what we are doing is not enough.”

Marcus Thuram was only fit for a substitute role due to an ankle knock, having played with the aid of painkilling injections, but Lautaro Martinez missed a huge opportunity just before the break.

Check the Football Italia Player Ratings for Juventus 1-0 Inter

Inzaghi warning for disappointing Inter

Inzaghi also surprised by making a triple substitution on the hour mark, introducing Carlos Augusto, Thuram and Nicola Zalewski. Was that a signal towards the squad?

“We weren’t playing in the second half like we did in the first. We knew Juve would be more courageous after the break and we weren’t as fluid. I still thought that we were getting stronger, as Zalewski had a big chance just before the goal, which we didn’t really see coming,” explained the coach.

“All the times I had come here as the coach of Lazio and Inter, my teams never managed to create this many chances, we just didn’t convert them. We are talking about a defeat that hurts and must make us work harder and better. It is all still wide open up there, but we’ve got to step up a gear, especially in certain matches.”

This was the third Serie A defeat of the season for Inter, the second in only 10 days, having also lost the rescheduled trip to Fiorentina 3-0.

“It is our second consecutive away defeat, clearly this is very different to the one in Florence. We must avoid proclamations, just get our heads down and work harder, especially improving our record in the head-to-head clashes.”

The major concern is their record against the big clubs, managing only three wins from 10 games against the top eight teams this season.

It is particularly worrying for Inzaghi considering the Scudetto showdown with Napoli is only two weeks away.

“It will be an important match, just as tonight’s was, but before that we must play Genoa and Lazio. It is a head-to-head against our main competitor, we will try to do our best, better than we did this evening.”