Chivu: ‘Inter regret not against Arsenal, but previous Champions League defeats’

Cristian Chivu admits he was ‘impressed’ with Arsenal’s strength in depth, as his Champions League regrets are not about tonight, but the previous Inter defeats. ‘We’ve grown since then.’

The Nerazzurri knew it would be a tough test against a Gunners side that had won all six Champions League games so far this season and was seven points clear at the top of the Premier League.

Although they got back on track with Petar Sucic, the Gabriel Jesus brace and a late Viktor Gyokeres counter-attack sealed the 3-1 result at San Siro.

Those legendary Arsenal set-play routines were also decisive, taking advantage of Inter’s zonal marking to make the runs from the back post in a pack.

How were the Premier League side better than the Serie A top team?

“They had more intensity, technique and pace, they occupied the space well, attacked the lines with intensity and speed, the same with the second balls, as they dive into every duel,” Chivu told Sky Sport Italia.

“We tried to stay in the match, we played quite well in the first half and at 1-1 could’ve scored another. That doesn’t mean we would’ve gone on to win, but incidents do change the mood of the teams.

“We were also unlucky on that goal on a corner, where it bounced off the bar and onto the head of an Arsenal player. In the second half, Arsenal raised the focus level and were also a little more humble, as there was some arrogance from them in the first half. They sat deeper, have physicality, and of course can bring players off the bench to raise the level further.”

This was the third consecutive Champions League defeat for Inter, after ending 2025 with losses to Atletico Madrid and Liverpool.

They slide out of the top eight for the first time this season, and could fall even further following tomorrow’s results, as winning the first four games was insufficient.

“We’ve got to wait for tomorrow to see what the table says, if a win will be enough or not. We know that we might have to go through the play-offs, that is not a problem for us,” insisted Chivu.

It is undeniable that Inter struggle against the ‘big’ clubs, as they have failed to win any of those matches in Serie A, the Supercoppa Italiana or the Champions League this term.

“The regret is that in these three games we could’ve had more, perhaps not tonight, but against Atletico and Liverpool a little more maturity and concentration could’ve made the difference.

“I think a month on from those matches, if we had the same attitude we did this evening, then it would’ve been a different result. That’s my supposition, I think those experiences helped us to grow and mature a little more.

“Despite the difficulties, this squad keeps going with the right attitude, it is ready to play open football knowing there could be problems against the likes of Saka and Trossard. I take home the courage and our recent growth from this match.”

Denzel Dumfries is still out of action after ankle surgery, but Chivu was asked if he might’ve introduced someone else to replace Luis Henrique in the second half.

“We did introduce Andy Diouf at the end, I had also thought about changing to 4-3-3, but I was lacking an attacking force, and Arsenal introduced Gabriel in defence when they realised that Pio Esposito was causing them problems.

“We had three strikers at the end, it’s true that we lacked a bit of attacking flair and crosses down the right, but Luis Henrique had a good game, all the lads put in a great effort tonight from start to finish,” assured the coach.

“When these Arsenal players come and surround you, they attack from all angles, they encircle you. I was so impressed with their technique with the ball moving at pace, they make the right choices and first touches, they have the speed of thought to find their teammates quickly and on the right Saka can take men on to cause all sorts of problems.

“We won a few challenges and went on the counter quite easily in those moments, but Arsenal have so much quality in their squad. I won’t point out how much money they spent, as that would be too banal, but the Premier League does have a very different type of intensity and pace to Italian football.

“Some of us, including myself, are trying to introduce something more in that sense, the type of moves we want to see, but it’s not an easy process. We’ve got to maintain the belief that we are on the right track.”