VERONA - Roberto Mancini reflected on a job well done after watching Inter beat Verona by a 3-0 scoreline.
Speaking to Sky Italia after the game, he said: "We played well tonight – not as well as we did in Genoa, when we lost, but still well. I'm tempted to say we play better away from home than we do at San Siro. But I don't think there's any direct relationship there. Perhaps we just feel a bit more pressure but we need to improve in that too."
The coach then commented on Hernanes, one of Inter's best performers this evening: "I think his best position is where he played tonight, in the hole, but I'm sure he can perform well in central midfield too."
Are Kovacic and Shaqiri not up to his level? "They'll get better because they're still young. Xherdan in particular has only just arrived in Italy and is still getting to know the Italian game."
Samir Handanovic also played a key role, turning away Luca Toni's penalty to keep the score at 0-2. "I think he's one of the best keepers in the world. His contract situation is not something I can say much about."
So will Inter have to sacrifice someone next summer? "It's hard to say at the moment. It depends on the situation and the time."
The Nerazzurri's central defensive pairing of Andrea Ranocchia and Nemanja Vidic showed they can play well together tonight: "They did that in Genoa too and we defend better like that. In the first half we chased the opposition down well. Our midfielders had the right mentality. We made a strong start and that helped us to beat a Verona side who had done very well at home recently."
Another area of improvement is in Inter's wing play. "I think Santon went almost 10 months without playing last year and I'm sure that playing regularly next season he can be a big player for us. He and D'Ambrosio could both push on and get even better next term."
Could next week's derby determine which side can keep chasing a European spot? "We have to think about the derby and nothing else. It's a derby and we have to win it without thinking about the league table."
Of the three midfielders who started tonight, only Gary Medel will be available against AC Milan after Marcelo Brozovic and Fredy Guarin picked up bookings, ruling them out through suspension. "Medel is a magnificent player who runs his heart out. If in the future we're able to combine technical players with others like him then we'll have a great team."
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