Inter will have to cope without midfielder Curtis Jones for three to four weeks after the summer signing was diagnosed with an adductor injury.
The 25-year-old underwent medical tests on Thursday morning after reporting the problem. His absence leaves manager Cristian Chivu with four possible replacements ahead of Sunday evening’s Serie A fixture against Parma.
Jones joined Inter from Liverpool during the summer transfer window in a deal worth €35m. He made his first start for the club in a Champions League defeat by Real Madrid in September.
He also began Inter’s final match before the international break, a 2-2 draw away to Roma. Jones lined up in midfield alongside Nicolo Barella and Piotr Zielinski, with Hakan Calhanoglu unavailable for that game.
Should Chivu select Barella and Calhanoglu in the centre of midfield against Parma, he will have Zielinski, Petar Sucic, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Aleksandar Stankovic to choose from as Jones’s replacement.
According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, Croatia international Sucic is currently the leading candidate to start. The midfielder could be considered the freshest option after appearing as a substitute in Croatia’s final match of the international break.
Zielinski, by contrast, started all four of Poland’s matches during the break and completed the full 90 minutes in Monday’s game. That workload could influence Chivu’s decision as he prepares Inter’s midfield for the visit of Parma.
La Gazzetta dello Sport reports that Mkhitaryan is next in the pecking order if the manager opts against Sucic. The newspaper also expects Stankovic to receive opportunities during Jones’s spell on the sidelines.
Jones’s injury comes after he had started to feature more prominently in Chivu’s plans following his move from Liverpool. Inter must now decide whether to use Sucic immediately or rely on the experience of Mkhitaryan and the availability of Zielinski.
Peter Young is a Senior Reporter with Football Italia.
