APPIANO GENTILE – How high should Inter and Fiorentina be aiming this season? "I can tell you what we're aiming for – to get back to the top of Serie A. That's always your aim when you're Inter. But I don't think it makes much sense to talk about targets after five games. What we must do at the moment is look to improve from one game to the next and remain within touching distance of the top. As for tomorrow, if you think that we're on 9 points and Fiorentina have 8 then yes, you can say it's a meeting between two of the league's top sides."
Moving on to a more detailed analysis, the coach spoke about whether Ricky Alvarez could perform in a central midfield role: "Yes, Riccardo could play as one of the three in the centre with the task of supporting the two front men. He has the physical and mental attributes to be able to do that, and he'd be comfortable playing there. He's done it before in Argentina and he can do it here too. It might be a solution to use during the game."Finally, Stramaccioni was asked how long he expects Rodrigo Palacio and Wesley Sneijder to be sidelined. "Rodrigo's situation is clearer than Wes's. Palacio has been on the road to recovery for a while and he'll start training with the team again on Monday but I won't risk him for the trip to Baku. As for Wes, I couldn't really say how long, I didn't ask the doctor for a date. He's going to need a bit of time to recover. If they can work a miracle then he might make the derby, but that's a statement based more on hope than any medical assessment."
