Inter one week before the start: what is working and what is not, between the pitch and the transfer market

Despite the announced and much-discussed revolutions, Cristian Chivu's Inter are once again starting from the certainty of the 3-5-2, a system the whole dressing room has known inside out for some time. The friendlies, especially those on the Asian tour, have shown a side in good shape with clear tactical ideas. Aleksandar Stankovic is starting to work as an alternative to Calhanoglu in the deep-lying playmaker role and, on the subject of certainties, Federico Dimarco already looks back to league form. The experiment of turning Andy Diouf into an all-action wing-back is also working very well, with plenty of goals and attacking moves coming from him so far.

So far, Inter's first-choice strike partnership hasn't worked because they have not played even a single minute together. Lautaro and Thuram returned very late after the post-World Cup period, and above all there is a question mark over the Frenchman, who played only 1 minute for France because of several minor physical problems.

Neither Luis Henrique nor Carlos Augusto has worked either, with the latter now slipping back in the pecking order as an alternative to Bastoni while too often looking distracted defensively. As for Pio Esposito, his physique still does not allow him to be as sharp as he was over the course of last season. It will take a bit of time, but as said at the start, it will still be up to him to lead the Inter attack on their debut.

They needed a defender and someone out wide to replace Dumfries, and two top-level reinforcements have arrived in John Stones, on a free transfer, and Djed Spence, for €35 million from Tottenham. Their arrivals, along with Pavard's return, mean the squad can now be considered numerically complete. The midfield has also been boosted by the return of Stankovic, who could also offer a long-term option if Calhanoglu were to leave at the end of next season.

Meanwhile, Bisseck and Pio Esposito have already reached their respective agreements, the first official and the second not yet, to renew their contracts and provide continuity to the plans put in place for both.

Inter did not panic, but they ran into plenty of problems, both with arrivals and, above all, departures. Palestra remains a bad look and an open wound that Spence has, for now, stitched up. Romero, tracked for a long time, did not arrive in the end, and with Khalaili it was more bad luck than anything else, but it forced Inter to move to plan C on the flank.

On departures, instead of the €30 million they had expected, Inter brought in only €5 million for Frattesi, which also leaves doubt over a possible return to Milan at the end of the year for the Italian midfielder. In the end, both Asllani and Pavard are still in the squad, two players long considered outside the project and for whom the club struggled to find a solution, with the Frenchman now set to stay.