Gagliardini: "Derby is a crucial match"

APPIANO GENTILE – Roberto Gagliardini is well aware of the magnitude of Saturday lunchtime’s derby against AC Milan and is desperate to shake off an ankle injury to be involved.

"I’ll do everything I can to be fit – it’s a crucial match against a direct rival," he told Mediaset Premium ahead of the game. "We’re working hard and I’ll do whatever it takes to be there."

The Nerazzurri midfielder also looked back at a difficult period for Inter.

"We had a couple of bad games in which we came off second best too many times," he admitted. "Now we have a chance to bounce back from the defeats in a huge game. We all know we need to find that extra gear and the derby is an opportunity to do that.

"We’re angry because we could have had more points than we do and be fighting for fourth and third place. We’re professionals and we know that we need to be aiming to win every game."

Gagliardini also spoke warmly about coach Stefano Pioli.

"The results are in his favour," he said. "He’s changed the team. We’ve obviously had a bit of a dip but now we have the chance to come back from that."