Antonio Conte hopes the comeback to beat Torino 4-2 can ‘make Inter realise it’s a tough slog and we need to dig deep to make it as difficult as possible for our opponents.’
The Nerazzurri were 2-0 down on the hour mark and struggling badly, but that second goal from the spot seemed to wake them up and they turned it around.
Antonio Conte hopes the comeback to beat Torino 4-2 can ‘make Inter realise it’s a tough slog and we need to dig deep to make it as difficult as possible for our opponents.’
The Nerazzurri were 2-0 down on the hour mark and struggling badly, but that second goal from the spot seemed to wake them up and they turned it around.
“I wanted to see the determination, fury and fire that I saw last season. So far, we’ve lost a lot of that,” the coach told DAZN.
“You need everything to win, so intelligence, tactics, but also heart and legs. We must be prepared to roll our sleeves up and fight for every single result.
“I didn’t like the first half, as we basically didn’t play. I hope this can serve as a wake-up call, so we realise it’s a tough slog and we need to dig deep to make it as difficult as possible for our opponents. Too often, we either haven’t done that at all or done it too late.
“Organisation is all well and good, but if there’s nothing personal in there, none of your determination and human values, it’s not going to be enough.”
Conte said before kick-off that treating Inter as the main Scudetto contenders to Juventus was ‘a miracle’ and he again sought to downplay their ambitions.
“I know that I have intelligent lads at my disposal, who can evaluate the situation in difficult moments. When I talk about resolving problems, some situations are emphasised too much and it disappoints me if someone follows that siren call.
“As I said, we’ve got to dig deep and fight, only then can we talk about objectives and targets. If we try to do everything with back-heel flicks and delicate passes, we’ll get nowhere.
“I need the lads to feel that furore even in the tunnel walking onto the pitch, and so far we don’t have that. It’s a good group, but they need to understand the importance of that attitude.
“What changed in the final half-hour was the ferocity of our pressing. If you do pressing slowly, going through the motions, it won’t do anything. You need ferocity, the desire to work hard and win the ball back immediately. We scored four goals after that and could’ve had a few more.”