Inter based their summer strategy on bringing in players from the Premier League to try to get closer to those powerhouses in Europe, but the early returns have been paltry at best. Only Curtis Jones has logged a meaningful number of minutes. His displays have been underwhelming, La Gazzetta dello Sport reports.
Djed Spence has yet to be fielded because he came in with a small muscular injury. His fitness was severely lacking after not taking part in the pre-season program with Tottenham. He’ll return after the break, but he’ll have to be excel to unseat Andy Diouf, who’s been very solid so far.
John Stones has been fielded a few times, mostly off the bench, but suffered a thigh injury in his first start. His presence hasn’t lifted the Inter defense, which has been extremely leaky in the first few matches. He should be fine for the Parma game in two weeks, but it’s not a lock yet.
Jones was the crown jewel of the Nerazzurri strategy. They courted him for months before striking a deal with Liverpool. He has played the most among the newcomers, totaling 152 minutes. He was trusted from the get-go against Real Madrid and Roma, but he hasn’t made the difference in any game.
Our Take on Inter
It’s very early, and Spence in particular should prove very useful, but he’ll have a lot of ground to cover to properly substitute for peak Denzel Dumfries. Still, they didn’t exactly onboard bona fide stars. There was a reason those players were available in the first place. A learning curve is to be expected, but also perhaps expectations should be somewhat tempered.