Why Nainggolan could be key for Inter against AC Milan

Nikita Fesyukov
17 ott 2018

Inter will face AC Milan in the derby in just 4 days at the San Siro and the whole city is expecting the matchup with great expectations. The Nerazzurri fans will most definitely be looking up to one of their most important players Radja Nainggolan to make the difference, but how exactly could the Belgian star be decisive against Inter's city rivals?

The 30-year-old midfielder started the season injured and thus was not able to show the impact he is capable of and not surprisingly, with the absence of Nainggolan, Inter's results were not too positive as well.

But since the return of the player, the Nerazzurri have improved greatly and Nainggolan's performances have been one of the catalysts of this rise, with Inter currently on a winning streak of 6 matches in all competitions.

Nainggolan is a player who lives for this kind of matches. Last season, he scored 2 goals in the 2nd leg of the Roma - Liverpool Champions League semi-finals. He also scored a goal against Lazio in the first derby of the season in a 2-1 win for the Giallorossi.

The season before, the midfielder was even more decisive in big matches, scoring again against Lazio once, against Milan, twice against Inter and once against Serie A champions Juventus.

Moreover, Nainggolan will surely look to take advantage of Milan's rather shaky defence at the start of the season, with the Rossoneri having to deal with a double-threat of Icardi and Nainggolan, which could potentially be a destructive and winning combination for Inter.

All in all, the answers to all the questions will be answered on Sunday evening at the San Siro. The derby has no favourites and anything can happen in front of an audience of 80,000 fans, but Inter surely can count on Radja Nainggolan to step up when needed the most, which is exactly now.