Cristian Chivu says Inter remain in contention in the Champions League and expects them to respond to Saturday’s derby defeat when they face Feyenoord in Rotterdam on Tuesday.
The Inter coach was speaking at his pre-match news conference ahead of the meeting at De Kuip, which kicks off at 21:00 CET (20:00 GMT). His comments were reported by Corriere dello Sport.
Inter arrive under pressure after losing 3-1 to Milan on Saturday, their first defeat in the league this season. Their European campaign has also been difficult so far, with three points from three matches.
They began with a late victory over Shakhtar Donetsk but then lost to Real Madrid and Club Brugge.
Despite that record, Chivu remains confident in both his squad and their ability to recover.
“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,” he 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 believes 16 points should be enough to secure a place in the top eight and qualify for 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.”
Feyenoord, managed by Giovanni van Bronckhorst, will provide a significant test. They have already beaten Como at home in this season’s competition, and Chivu warned that their home surroundings help bring out their strengths.
“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,” he said.
“It won’t be easy, but at the same time we have to bring out all our qualities to put them in difficulty.”
Inter have had to manage a number of unpredictable circumstances while dealing with player availability, but Chivu said the situation had improved in the build-up to the match.
“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.”
