Inter director Beppe Marotta urges UEFA to ‘be a little more precise in future’ after the Achraf Hakimi COVID test controversy and explains the squad rotation.
The game with Genoa kicks off at 17.00 UK time (16.00 GMT), click here for the line-ups and LIVEBLOG.
Inter director Beppe Marotta urges UEFA to ‘be a little more precise in future’ after the Achraf Hakimi COVID test controversy and explains the squad rotation.
The game with Genoa kicks off at 17.00 UK time (16.00 GMT), click here for the line-ups and LIVEBLOG.
Hakimi is on the bench at Marassi, after he had originally been ruled out of the Champions League meeting with Borussia Monchengladbach with hours to spare.
It proved to be a ‘false positive’ result, as he posted two negative swabs over the next two days.
“There is certainly disappointment and regret at the way things developed and the decisions we were forced to accept. The player was negative in the morning and positive in the afternoon,” Marotta told Sky Sport Italia.
“It’s not an alibi, but a statement of fact, so we hope that in future UEFA can be a little more precise with their communication. We confirmed that Hakimi is negative after two swabs processed by the relevant authorities, so we thank them for allowing Hakimi to be entirely rehabilitated.
“The season has only just begun, we too had to deal with this pandemic, so while again it must not be treated as an alibi, it did create some problems.”
Antonio Conte said that Inter want to follow Liverpool’s example, which took four years to win the Premier League, but does Marotta share the timeline?
“Winning the Scudetto is a tough ask, so there is a great deal of competition and it’s natural that every year everyone starts out aiming for the top.
“There is faith, we are happy with the path we have undertaken and the ultimate aim is to win.”
Atalanta rotated the squad today and paid a price, losing 3-1 at home to Sampdoria.
“This is a moment of the season with a great deal of stress on the teams, as the Champions League just started along with Serie A and just after internationals. It makes life difficult for the coaches to avoid injuries and put out a line-up that takes everything into consideration.”