Chivu: ’’This group has the right mentality and plenty of motivation’’ | OneFootball

SEATTLE – Inter – River Plate eve, last matchday of Group E in the FIFA Club World Cup. Wednesday at 6pm, local time in Seattle, the Nerazzurri will step onto the pitch to clinch the qualification to round of 16 of the competition.

From the Lumen Field stadium Cristian Chivu’s press conference.

What type of game do you expect? "We are expecting a tough game, similarly to the previous two. These teams have ambitions, they want to showcase their worth, they always make your life difficult on the pitch. The physical condition of the American teams is better than the European’s, as the latter have just ended long batches of games. It’s never easy, we take on this challenge and try and find the best mental and physical energies’’.

Is the pitch not suitable? "We cannot complain, we are used to it. Even in Los Angeles it wasn’t the best. We always adapt to what we find on the spot. I must say that all the facilities we’ve been are excellent. It is not Europe, as this is an NFL stadium, so not ‘’soccer’’, but it isn’t bad’’.

This is your first in/out game of your career as Inter’s coach… "This doesn’t change anything. We have the right mentality, every game needs to be approached seriously, we are in better shape now. We look ahead; we will try as usual to step onto the pitch to display our football’’.

How happy does the contribution of the new arrivals make you? "I’m happy about everyone, about the new arrivals too, even though it has been written that their performances were not up to standard. Here we often forget that they have joined us in a rather difficult context, they’ve played a match after only two training sessions. Think about Luis Henrique: he’s joined after a two-week holiday and these are not friendlies, this is a World Cup. They have all been available to help: at the 75th minute of the game I asked Luis Henrique if he wanted to come off and he said that he’d rather continued, even though I gained that he was finished. I appreciate a lot this type of things, as I appreciate the contribution of the lads from the Under 20: Cocchi, Re Cecconi, De Pieri and Berenbruch have plenty of energies, they raise the level of the training sessions, helping the veterans too’’.

What do you think about River Plate? "I have great respect for Gallardo, he’s awesome. He’s been relevant as a player and he’s a very good coach: with River Plate he achieved great results. What can I say about River: they’re a good team, featuring players that have experienced European football, as well as World Champions, there’s Mastantuono, who will be next seen in Europe. River is part of the story of South American football, we look up to them.

I appreaciate seeing Colidio: he’s been with me in the Under 20, before he went back to Argentina. He gave me a hand during that time, he’d give advice to the lads, always being extremely professional. I can’t wait to see him again’’.

Can you comment on Mastantuono? "He was born in 2007 and has already got many games under his belt, I like seeing him play. Who does he remind me of? Maybe I see Di Maria in him a bit, with his left foot: he’s good and he’ll be the delight of football in the future. It won’t be easy at Real Madrid, but I think he won’t disappoint’’.

Do you think the morale has improved after the win against Urawa? "I think the players must have listened to my advice: do not read comments and the news. It’s been over a month since the final in Munich, we cannot still talk about it every single day or we’ll never get past it. We have learned to leverage on a crucial thing: during tough times we need to find some humanity, kind words, thoughtfulness, appreciating the things that allow you to put behind the obstacles that life presents you.

Bad moments can happen, but it’s easier to overcome them if you have by your side a group of men that look you in the eye. This team has the right motivation and mentality, the last years are proof of this. They have played three European finals in 6 years, the won the Second Star, they got close to winning more trophies.

We tend to look at the wins: I don’t, the journey is more important. Champions, when the time comes, always manage to give something extra, what’s next is what matters. We need to roll up our sleeves and eat some ….We need to chew it, look at ourselves in the mirror and accept that’s what we have got to do. The group is giving me good signals, they always try to look their team-mates in the eye and try to create together what they’ve managed in the last 5 years’’.

How have you prepared the game tactically? Have you seen how the table is going to pan out? "We haven’t qualified yet. We should think about what we have to do out there on the pitch, we will see if River will mirror our formation or they’d stick to what they’ve done in the past. We don’t look at that much, we will be focused on our football, being ready to understand the moments of the game and try to turn them our way, aware that we will face different types of moments tomorrow. We will adapt, without forgetting our principles and values, adding something extra every now and then with the hope ours will be a really high performance’’.