Antonio Conte has played down Inter’s strong start to the season and warned his players of the ‘trap’ that awaits them against Sampdoria tomorrow.
Conte has led Inter to five straight wins, putting them top of Serie A, but he warned “good horses are the ones who cross the line first.”
“We’re not the favourites, Juve and Napoli are both ahead of us,” the Coach said at a Press conference.
Antonio Conte has played down Inter’s strong start to the season and warned his players of the ‘trap’ that awaits them against Sampdoria tomorrow.
Conte has led Inter to five straight wins, putting them top of Serie A, but he warned “good horses are the ones who cross the line first.”
“We’re not the favourites, Juve and Napoli are both ahead of us,” the Coach said at a Press conference.
“One or two wins won’t change my mind: good horses are the ones who cross the line first. I’m not the first Coach to win five games in a row here.
“We have room for improvement in everything, it’s my job. When you change Coach, you change everything.
“I think we all have a path to take but I remain very cautious, there’s no magic wand. We’ve started now and we’ll see how fast we can go.
“If we want to be a good team, we must eliminate the ups and downs. Just look at Inter’s history. Other Coaches have also won the first five games.
“This team were top of the table two years ago in December, not September. But then to qualify for the Champions League, they had to win their final match at Lazio. That must be a warning to us.”
The 49-year-old won an unbeaten Scudetto with Juve in 2012, so how does his current side stack up?
“Comparisons are difficult, they’re different situations. Juve and I had a good season together.
“Milan were favourites, Inter still had treble winners and there was Napoli. Now the quality of the League has risen.
“The Marassi is always a trap. Samp are very organised, it’s a game where we have so much to lose.
“But for us, it’s the game of our lives. Our thoughts aren’t on Barcelona and Juventus. It’s our fifth game in a few days so we’ll have to take intelligent risks. I’ll name a balanced team.”
Romelu Lukaku has not missed a beat since arriving from Manchester United, but Alexis Sanchez has played just 17 minutes so far…
“He’s part of the squad. Alexis did well coming on against Lazio. We know he isn’t just any player.
“Like I’ve said in the past, we must let him regain his brilliance. You’ll see him on the field at some point.”