APPIANO GENTILE – Rodrigo Palacio sat down with Inter Channel to review last season and 2016 in general before looking forward to the oncoming year.
"We were top of the league until January," the Argentine began, "but in the following two months we stopped playing our game and dropped points. We lost ground on the teams in front of us and then we lost confidence. At the end, we finished in a decent position but nevertheless not the one we had hoped for."
Rodrigo was made to wait until the Carpi game in 2016 for his opening goal of the season in what was a typical match from that period.
"It happened a couple of times that sides would draw level late on, even at San Siro. All the positive things from the start of the season were undone during that spell. We were also unlucky to drop a lot of points.
"There was a bit of anger because until December we were competitive, which is thanks to the gaffer's hard work, and we showed we could fight it out for the title.
"From a personal point of view, everything was going well during my early years at the club, but following my injury I've changed my way of playing and moving. In the last year and a half, I've played less and I'm short on match fitness, but I've got fantastic team-mates who deserve to play.
"It might seem easy from the outside," Palacio added. "When I'm not playing I also analyse games in a certain way, but when you're actually out there on the pitch, the spaces seem smaller and you don't have enough time. Maybe it's not enough just to be able to read games to become a coach one day!
"I prefer playing as the second striker because I'm closer to the goal. Playing with Mauro Icardi or another striker is definitely easier."
Palacio has been through three coaches in the last 12 months at the club.
"We were happy under Roberto Mancini," he explained, "it's a shame it ended the way it did. He's got a lot of experience and took the pressure on his shoulders, leaving us to work in a calmer frame of mind.
"Frank de Boer is a talented coach with interesting ideas. He's more focused on possession. It's a shame he didn't get more time, but results are what matter in football. He's a good bloke.
"Stefano Pioli is a classic Italian manager, very well prepared and analyses games excellently. We're pleased he's here and confident he can help us improve drastically."
Speaking about himself, the Argentine was philosophical about his lean spell in front of goal.
"I haven't scored for a while, but playing well gives me more confidence than scoring. The goals will come when you're playing well and feeling confident."
Palacio also hinted at what he's got in store for the festive period back at home in Argentina.
"Bahia Blanca is kind of the basketball capital in the country," he explained, "although they like football there as well. I'm a big fan of the sport and played both when I was a kid. When the opportunity arose to train with the first team, I had to choose and I decided upon football.
"I've got a contract with Inter until June 2017. After that the plan is to stay in Italy."
Finally, Rodrigo cast an eye forward to the year ahead.
"Can 2017 be Inter's year?" he queried in conclusion. "I'm confident: we're working hard and this is an excellent squad but we have to show it on the pitch. We have to finish in the top three; we have a great squad."
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