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Simone Inzaghi said Inter must welcome the challenge of navigating through a hectic fixture list and take pride in being successful on all fronts this season.
Inter take on Feyenoord in their Champions League round of 16 second leg on Tuesday, leading the Dutch side 2-0 after goals from Marcus Thuram and Lautaro Martinez.
Inzaghi’s team are also top of the Serie A table following their 3-2 win over Monza on Saturday, and are also in the Coppa Italia semi-finals, where they face rivals AC Milan.
They take on Atalanta in their final league fixture before the final international break of the season, before closing out March with a home clash against Udinese.
“The schedule should not be a problem but an incentive. We have to be proud of what we’re doing; these guys find the energy,” Inzaghi told reporters.
“In this period, we had some players missing, which limited us in terms of rotation. We’ve played a lot of games.
“This year we had to play the last Champions League group game at the end of January. It was a longer qualifying period.
“It’s a fact, but we’re proud of what we’re doing and we have to continue. It’s a lot of work, but we’re proud to do it.”
Just another @ChampionsLeague eve #ForzaInter #UCL #InterFeyenoord pic.twitter.com/U1zxRy7OJT
— Inter (@Inter_en) March 10, 2025
Inter have won each of their last five home games in the Champions League without conceding a goal, and have kept a clean sheet in each of the last six.
The last side to keep seven straight clean sheets at home in the competition was Atletico Madrid in April 2015 (seven), while the last Italian side to do so was Juventus in December 2002 (also seven).
But Inzaghi’s team have struggled with injuries in recent weeks, with the club confirming on Monday that midfielder Piotr Zielinski could be sidelined for up to two months with a muscle injury.
The Italian media also said Inter’s leading scorer Martinez and defender Stefan de Vrij could be rested against Feyenoord in preparation for the clash with Atalanta.
Martinez has netted six goals in nine Champions League appearances this season, including one in the first leg against Feyenoord last week.
Only Hernan Crespo in 2002-03 (nine), Samuel Eto’o in 2010-11 (eight) and Adriano in 2004-05 (seven) have scored more in a single campaign in the competition for Inter, but Inzaghi said he must think of the bigger picture.
“I will rotate according to the physical state of the players. We have some fatigue to evaluate. Lautaro and De Vrij have not been out training with us today, but I have a good feeling (about them),” Inzaghi said.
“I’ll evaluate whether to use them or not. The usual unavailable players have been joined by Zielinski, who had a major injury at a time we didn’t want. He was growing a lot, he was helping us. We’ll wait for him like others.”
Inter will, however, be able to call on first-choice goalkeeper Yann Sommer again, with Inzaghi confirming the ex-Switzerland international had recovered from a thumb fracture and would start against Feyenoord.
“He is a goalkeeper who has been here with us for a year and a half; in that time he has done great things,” Inzaghi said.
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