After beating Feyenoord in the round of 16 of the UEFA Champions League, Inter will face Bayern Munich in the quarterfinals of the the European tournament and are still in the race in the three competitions they are playing in, and can potentially win the Treble, but everything will be decided in the upcoming two months. The Nerazzurri can make this one of the most successful seasons in soccer’s history, or one of the most disappointing.
It was Inter manager Simone Inzaghi who, indirectly, made a big statement after the first leg against Feyenoord. During the usual press conference, a journalist asked if Inter could potentially win both competitions, leaving out the Coppa Italia, but it was the same Nerazzurri manager that made the gesture of three with his hands. It was a way to underline the fact Inter are still competing in all the competitions, or maybe not.
The Nerazzurri are currently leading the Serie A table with a one-point margin on Napoli and this Sunday they will meet Atalanta away, and in case of a defeat the side coached by Gian Piero Gasperini can potentially take the lead of the standings. At the same time, Inzaghi’s men will face AC Milan in the semifinals of the Coppa Italia next month and are in the quarter finals of the UEFA Champions League where they will face Bayern Munich in an exciting two legged knockout stage.
Of course, there are really few chances to see Inter winning all three competitions, as they did in 2010 under manager Jose Mourinho when they became the first and only Serie A team to win the treble, or Triplete as they call it. On the other hand, everything is possible and Inzaghi didn’t cool down speculation following his comments.
After beating Monza on Saturday, the Italian manager said that he was “wrong” when he underlined Inter are still in the race to win the three competitions: “I should have said four, as we also play the FIFA Club World Cup this summer.” Despite some disappointing results and not so convincing performances, including the last one against Monza, Inzaghi is not afraid of the future.
Despite the good results, Inzaghi’s job and cycle at the club will likely be decided by the evolution of the next weeks, even if his job is not at risk. While if it’s true that Inter are still in the race in all the three tournaments, not winning at least one between the league and the Champions League would be seen as a big failure.
Injuries are not helping Inzaghi, and if they are to make this dream a reality the Italian manager desperately needs all his players in their best form. However, injuries like the most recent one of midfielder Piotr Zielinski who will be out for at least six weeks, are forcing Inzaghi to have only five midfielders for the three roles playing every three days. The former Napoli midfielder has probably been the best addition to the Inter’s roster this season, but he won’t be able to help at least until the last month of action.
While Inzaghi will try to recover some of his players at the best of the form ahead of the last stint, this is probably the last shot for this squad to win the biggest European tournament after the 2023 final lost to Manchester City. Inzaghi is aware that roster will deeply change in the summer, as Inter will try to rejuvenate the team as American fund Oaktree, which own the team, demand for the future of the club. It’s not clear if the Italian coach will prioritize the Champions League over the Italian league, but as things stand today Inter are still in the race to replicate that incredible 2009-10 season.
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