Conte: "Results affect judgements, we're a united group"

REGGIO EMILIA – Inter produced a convincing display at the Mapei Stadium, beating Sassuolo 3-0 on matchday nine in Serie A. The result was never in doubt in Reggio Emilia, where the Nerazzurri took an early lead through Sanchez and built on this advantage through Chiriches’ own goal and Gagliardini’s fine second-half finish.

This is what Antonio Conte had to say after the match:

Just how important could today’s victory be?“We always try to give our best. Sometimes, things go our way and other times they don’t. However, we always give 100%. The most important thing is to come off the pitch with a shirt soaked in sweat.”

Did something change tactically or mentally today?"No, nothing changed. We prepared for the match, respecting our opponents and their characteristics in the process. Barella played in front of the defence but needed to push forward in certain situations. We implemented what we’d prepared and it was a great win, but results tend to affect people’s judgements of our performances. Today was perhaps our best display in terms of our ferocity, but I don’t think it was our best performance of the campaign: we’ve done better than that this season only to not pick up a positive result.”

Against teams that put men behind the ball at San Siro, Inter seem to struggle more. Do you think that matches like today are ideal in terms of your team’s characteristics?"Games change and the characteristics of the opposition also change, we must be ready to adapt. I’d like to congratulate my players on how they did today. It’s not easy, especially at Inter, because many people can’t wait to criticise us. We need to focus on ourselves, aware of the fact that there are those who want to throw mud at us. It’s not easy for the players, but we are a unified front and such situations should provide us with more strength.”

How important have the quotes coming from the Club been in the past few days?“Responsibility needs to be shared and we need to be united, for better or for worse. In positive and negative moments, we all need to take credit and responsibility. We’re all in the same boat and we’re all rowing in the same direction.”