From Rome to Rome, Kristjan Asllani closes the cycle and starts again with momentum. From being the negative protagonist of last season's game against the yellow-reds, which ended with the victory of the team led by Mourinho, the Albanian got his revenge last weekend thanks to an excellent last quarter of an hour, as he contributed to the victory of the black and white.
Quick recovery, heads up and precise long pass for Dimarco. Precise cross of the latter in the yellow-red area, where Thuram diverts the ball into the goal. Thus, Asllani inspired the action that gave "oxygen" to Inter after 81 minutes of consecutive attacks, repaying the trust coach Inzaghi gave him.
"Asllani is growing and he needs to be patient, but he is quite strong and has a lot of quality," Calhanoglu said immediately after the match. Compliments for the Albanian have also come from Inzaghi, who has underlined his progress, after activating him in a subtle challenge and still in balance.
CONFIDENCE AND PROJECT – The decision to insert Aslani in place of Calhanoglu for the final attack speaks volumes about the faith of the black coach, who did not trust the former Empoli player much last season. Kristian's legs did not tremble, unlike what happened a little over a year ago, in his first 77 minutes as a starter in the black jersey.
Then it went so badly that Inzaghi suggested moving Calhanoglu into the center as Brozovic's deputy. This time, even for about 20 minutes, the answer of the Albanian was completely different, in a context that was not simple at all. "I am happy," said Asllani at the end of the game. - I want to feel even more protagonist, so I will work hard. The coach is giving me confidence even in such important matches, so I thank him".
Just over a month ago, on the eve of his season debut in the Champions League, Inzaghi explained how Asllani was an "important player and ready to start". Against Rome, the coach from Piacenza received new, important answers from the Albanian.
LEARNING FROM CALHANOGLU - "Learning from a champion like Calhanoglu is a privilege, he gives me great help", - added Asllani. Yes, because Inzaghi has decided to cast him in the role of "director", seeing him as the replacement of the Turk, the person who has been holding the keys to the midfield of the blacks for a year.
And Asllani is applying himself to this role with obsession, trying to steal every secret of the Turk. From the coach to the managers, there is a belief within the blacks that Asllani can become a cornerstone of the future midfield through a path of growth that necessarily goes through greater activation and greater responsibility.
The appearances compared to last season, after the first 13 games between the championship and the Champions League, are the same (8), but until now Asllani has found more space in Europe, being 75 minutes on the field, in the three games the first of the group stage, compared to only 15 minutes in the previous edition.
So far, the only time there has been trouble has been in "San Sebastian", where however the entire black team had a complicated evening. The minimum target is to at least repeat his first year's 29 appearances in Milan, possibly increasing his playing time compared to the 858 minutes in total a year ago. But at this rate it shouldn't be a problem. If Asllani is the one who was seen in the last quarter of an hour against Roma, he will start to see the field of play more persistently./Gazzetta dello Sport