MILAN - Stefano Pioli had plenty of plaudits for his players after Inter beat Fiorentina 4-2 but was equally aware of the areas where his side need to improve.
The Nerazzurri made a breathtaking start to proceedings at San Siro, then almost surrendered their 3-0 advantage before clinching the points late on when Mauro Icardi netted the fourth.
"We did lots of good things today, especially at the start of the game," the coach began in his post-match analysis with the media. "We got our approach right and if we play as a team and stick together we have the potential to be very successful. It's when we stop playing as a team that we start running into trouble.
“First and foremost we need to work on our mentality. We have to learn to dig deep and know when to hold on because there are always two teams out there.
“The lads are working really hard, but we need to think a bit more clearly at times and understand that we can't play at the same tempo for the whole 95 minutes. We'll get better at that with time.
“We didn't maintain possession as well as we could have in the second half. I saw lots of good things but also some not so good things that we already knew we have to work on.
“The players need confidence but they've got the ability to play an attacking brand of football. We want to be bossing matches and putting opponents under the cosh."
Victory sees the Nerazzurri climb above Fiorentina in the table and Pioli stressed the target is now to keep aiming higher.
"We want to win as many games as possible – that's the only way we can hope to get up where it matters.
"It was a tough match tonight against a quality, well-drilled side. We won it and we're happy because we needed this win.
"Now we'll turn our attentions to the next one – another big game against Napoli, who are above us in the table.”
On meeting chairman Jindong Zhang: “He made an excellent impression on me. The owners really know how to make their presence felt. We all want to grow together and turn Inter back into the successful side it's always been.
“I've inherited a close-knit squad. They realise they're playing for a great club with amazing fans. We're all giving 100% to get this club back where it deserves."
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