As Serie A is set to resume on empty stadiums, Inter Milan president, Steve Zhang insists his side is going to Juventus to win.
Zhang has been outspoken on the handling of the coronavirus outbreak in Italy and its impact on football. He is all in favor of playing behind closed doors so long as there is no change to the calendar.
Zhang publicly criticized Serie A following the postponement of games and a suggested extension of the season.
Now, it has been decided all next month games will be played as planned without fans. The Inter Milan president is ok with the decision. Contrarily, he insists his team will still be going into the top of the table clash with bitter rivals Juventus.
Steven Zhang backed the decision to play games without supporters in an interview on BBC Sport.
He said, “Closing doors but continuing matches is the right thing to do. It’s the correct decision so that the people aren’t put at risk. Closing the doors to match is difficult for many reasons and nobody wants it. But in the end, in order to continue with the calendar and normal activities, we have to prioritize public safety above all else. Right now it’s the only viable option.”
Inter head into the game in third place in the table. The club can cut the gap to second-placed Juventus to three points with a win in Turin. The Nerazzurri also have one game in hand over the Italian champions and two on leaders, Lazio.
On the other hand, there is still no confirmation regarding when the rearranged Coppa Italia semi-finals will occur.
Juventus and Napoli are still in the UEFA Champions League while Inter will face Getafe in the last 16 of the Europa League.
In this case, the last week of May could be used to decide the winner of this season’s Coppa Italia in a “Final Four” format.