Conte tells Inter to play with ‘courage and hunger’ at Barca

Photo by Claudio Villa - Inter/Inter via Getty Images

The Italian does not want to just defend at the Camp Nou

Antonio Conte says he wants his Inter Milan team to play with “courage and hunger” when they take on Barcelona at the Camp Nou on Wednesday night.

The Nerazurri head into the clash in great form. They have won six of six in Serie A to top the table ahead of champions Juventus.

Inter needed a stoppage-time equaliser to rescue a draw against Slavia Prague in their opening group match, but Conte wants his team to go for it against Barcelona.

“I prefer the performance to the result, to play at Camp Nou with courage and hunger. I don’t want to get a good result after we’ve been dominated for 90 minutes. I don’t want to come here with a helmet and shield to defend the goal. We are trying to grow in terms of mentality and professionalism.

“Preparing a game for a draw or to just do damage limitation would go against what I want from my lads. We must have faith in ourselves, look the situation in the eye and not like a boxer who is trying not to get punched. We’ve got to go out there and play.”

Source | Football Italia

Barcelona got the better of Inter last year in the group stages, winning 2-0 at the Camp Nou and drawing 1-1 at the San Siro.

They will face a different team this time around but are formidable at home in Europe and are on a run of 32 games unbeaten in the Champions League at the Camp Nou.

Source: barcablaugranes.com