Chivu: ‘Inter are still in the Champions League race, we’ll have a great game against Feyenoord’

Cristian Chivu insists Inter are “still in the race” in the Champions League, and has backed his players to respond to Saturday’s derby defeat in Rotterdam on Tuesday.

With quotes courtesy of the Corriere dello Sport, the Inter coach spoke at his pre-match press conference before the game against Feyenoord at De Kuip. It kicks off at 21:00 CET [20:00 GMT].

Inter are under pressure on two fronts. Saturday’s 3-1 loss to Milan was their first league defeat of the season. In Europe they have only three points from three games, after a late win over Shakhtar Donetsk and defeats to Real Madrid and Club Brugge.

“I believe in the work, in what this team is and what it has done so far. I’m confident. They’re champions, and they’ve shown it,” Chivu said. “There have been negative episodes and mistakes that we have to learn from, accept and move past, trying to fix them. But I’m confident.”

Chivu sets Inter Champions League target

Chivu believes 16 points will be enough for a top-eight finish and a place in the round of 16.

“We’ve always said that the Champions League, like the league, has to be played game by game. To get into the top eight, it’s around 16 points,” he said. “For now we’ve won one game and lost two, but we’re still in it. We know what we are and what we want, and I’m convinced we’ll have a great game.”

He warned that Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s Feyenoord, who beat Como at home earlier in the competition, will be dangerous. “In this stadium they thrive. They have intensity, quality and a lot of players like Moussa and Zequiel. They’re quality players and inverted wingers. It won’t be easy, but at the same time we have to bring out all our qualities to put them in difficulty.”

“We’ve had to deal with some unpredictable situations and look for solutions with what we had available. We’ve got Provedel and Pavard back, and fortunately we haven’t had any problems in the last few days.”