Holding Midfield
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Having lost several key players over the summer and sacked their new coach Stefano Pioli after just two months without playing a single league game, replacing him with unknown youth coach Devis Mangia,* it was fair to suggest that Internazionale may have been favourites for this one. Evidently, things weren’t that simple. Gian Piero Gasperini set Inter up in a 3-4-3, while Palermo appeared to play into their hands with their 4-4-2. Of course, shape only provides a basic framework and it was the Sicilians who took control of the game. With Palermo pressing very intensely from the front early on, Inter struggled to get the ball forward and Abel Hernandez almost scored with a header after Fabrizio Miccoli pounced on a defender early on. They also looked to target the wings, particularly new boy Jonathan – a good plan against a 3-4-3 given it either stretches the back three if the wing-backs attack, or leaves them narrow if they stay back. Josip Ilicic and Federico Balzaretti would regularly link up down the left, while Miccoli would frequently drift out to the left wing for counters. Inter didn’t look certain defensively either. The front three remained high, meaning Palermo’s full-backs [...]
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