He is the first Nerazzurri player to score a brace with Italy twenty years after Bobo Vieri. His performance is also a signal ahead of the derby against AC Milan.
How does one forget a night like this? Scoring 2 goals Davide Frattesi had the perfect game against Ukraine, gifting the first victory to the new head coach Luciano Spalletti. Simone Inzaghi will be happy to find him today at the training center, charged up for the derby on Saturday.
Are you happy about the brace? The important thing is to bring home the 3 points, especially in such important games. If I score a goal, then even better,” said the ‘Nerazzurri‘ midfielder, putting the team ahead of himself.
However, he couldn’t help but feel delighted when he was told that the last Inter player to score a brace for Italy was Christian Vieri on March 29, 2003, against Finland.
“I know I’m not at the level of the starters (Barella and Mkhitaryan, Ed.), but that only motivates me to work even harder.
Am I trying to make things difficult for Inzaghi? It’s normal to try, I will try to convince him but then, it’s the coach who makes the final decisions. The week has started well; let’s see if it will end even better… We’re definitely heading into the derby with high spirits.”
Frattesi knows his time will come soon as the Inter coach believes in him, and the club invested €33 million plus bonuses to secure him this summer, beating competition from Milan and other big clubs. Once he enters the starting lineup, it’s unlikely he’ll come out.
So far, the midfielder hasn’t started a single game for Inter in the first three rounds of the season, and he will likely begin on the bench for the derby on Saturday. That’s because Mkhitaryan has been training at with the team throughout the break.
Frattesi had scored his first goal for Italy on June 18 in the Nations League against the Netherlands, in the match for third-place, but the double against Ukraine carries much more weight because it keeps the Azzurri in the run for qualification for Euro 2024.
“I will be honest,” the midfielder continued, “I didn’t imagine my first ‘brace’ with Italy to be this beautiful. However, the important thing is that these goals were useful in getting us three points. After the 1-1 draw against Macedonia, it was crucial to bounce back.
The boos for Donnarumma? I don’t understand things like that… I’ve never seen it in the national team. When I heard them, I hugged him and told him that I care about him.
