ANSA 09/10/2026

ANSA - Chivu says happy with Inter's courage despite costly errors at Real Madrid

What matters is the reaction to the mistakes says coach

Inter coach Cristian Chivu said he was encouraged by his side's courage despite costly errors leading them to lose their opening Champions League match 2-1 at Real Madrid on Tuesday.
    A mix-up in defence enabled Kylian Mbappe to score the opening goal for the Spanish giants and Inter goalkeeper Josep Martinez made a mess of trying to dribble away when under pressure later in the first half and Real's Fede Valverde was able to poke the ball home.
    Carlos Augusto pulled one back for Inter in the second half.
    "I'm not angry; I'm happy with the courage and personality we showed, and with the way the team overcame a difficult moment," said Chivu, who was up against Real coach Jose Mourinho after being part of the special's one's treble-winning team at Inter in 2010.
    "What matters to me is the reaction to certain mistakes, the body language, and how much you believe in what you're doing.
    "We tried to be dominant and execute our game plan successfully, which makes me optimistic about the future of this team.
    "We knew about their quality and that we could make mistakes.

 

We didn't try to sit back and speculate; we went toe-to-toe with Real Madrid, and that's the performance I'm taking away from this game.
    "Pepo ( Martinez) reacted like a top-level goalkeeper: he stayed focused and made some important saves.
    "When you talk about a goalkeeper, what always matters is how you react and how you find that pride within yourself to avoid losing confidence".

 

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