Inter didn't start the season well. I noticed something was not right from the pre-season results but didn't read too much into it because it's pre-season after all. We got off to a flying start in our first match and I thought, we are on track after all but we made it hard for ourselves. Things were only to get harder. We looked off the pace, short on fitness and it looked like the doubts in the summer surrounding Milan Skriniar's future at the club had an effect on him and his team-mates. The players seemed easily irritable and they weren't focused. We lost a lot of ground in the title race early on losing head-to-head deservingly against Lazio and Milan, less so against Roma. In between, we lost deservingly to Udinese as well. Our form picked up after losing to Roma with 4 wins on the trot before another head-to-head defeat away to Juventus but that was a punctuation of a run of 6 wins in 7 matches before the World Cup break. After the break, we started well inf...
Inter swept past Milan 3-0 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia to retain the Supercoppa Italiana. I couldn't watch the match as it wasn't shown "live" in Singapore. It is always great to win a derby in this fashion but the feeling is lost when you don't actually watch the match. We have continued the trend of winning trophies in consecutive seasons which is an excellent habit to cultivate and this victory has proved that there is no doubt that Inter can beat anyone in a one-off match. However, this victory just papers over growing cracks at Inter. When I see the club President, Steven Zhang get involved in the trophy celebrations, I feel he is not embarrassed. To be honest, his involvement looks a bit awkward as well. The squad is increasingly heading towards degeneration as the best players are slowly getting picked apart and replaced by ageing players. We know the reason why this is the case - the club is broke and they have to sell to invest in the team. The 30-something-...
After winning the Supercoppa, I had written an article that the triumph merely covered the cracks that are emerging. In the aftermath of that triumph, news has emerged that Milan Skriniar will not be extending his contract and would thus be allowed to leave on a free transfer in the summer. It is a huge loss for Inter and their management as they would have got a big fee for selling him in the previous summer. Not to mention, the status of being an indispensable member of the team and a fan favourite. Like many Inter fans, I was troubled to hear the rumour of Paris Saint-Germain (PSG)'s interest in him. I prayed the deal will not take place and Inter would get him to extend his contract just as our directors, Beppe Marotta and Piero Ausilio thought would be the case. Just before the game, Skriniar's agent conducted an interview stating that Inter was looking to cash in on him in the summer and they rejected Inter's contract offer as it didn't meet their financial reque...
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