Inter Milan vs St Etienne preview - Mazzarri gets real about St Etienne

Posted Wednesday, October 22, 2014 by PA

Inter Milan coach Walter Mazzarri does not believe his side will underestimate St Etienne in Thursday's Europa League Group F match.

The Italians go into the encounter at San Siro looking to remain perfect in the competition and take a giant step towards the knockout stages.

A 1-0 victory at Dnipro and a 2-0 home triumph over Qarabag have placed Inter in command of their pool and the Nerazzurri are now four points clear of second-placed St Etienne after two games.

Les Verts, meanwhile, remain winless in the competition and have yet to score.

The French outfit were held to goalless draws at Qarabag and against Dnipro in their opening two group games.

"We have studied them," Mazzarri said at his press conference. "They have made a strong start to the season in France.

"We have a lot of respect for them.

"They are a prestigious club and for us it will be a stimulating game to see if we can continue where we left off against Napoli.

"I want to see the right approach from my team from a tactical and psychological point of view."

Inter head into the encounter on the back of Sunday's 2-2 home draw with Napoli.

The Nerazzurri looked to be heading for a defeat after Jose Callejon had put Napoli ahead in the 90th minute but a last-gasp goal from Hernanes earned Inter a point against Mazzarri's former club.

The outcome delivered the Milan outfit to ninth place in the Serie A table.

Inter have not lost at home in eight European games and will be optimistic to extend that run against a St Etienne side that has not won in Europe in their last three away matches.

Christophe Galtier's men travel to Italy in buoyant mood after making a solid start to the Ligue 1 season.

They are fifth in the league standings following Saturday's 1-0 victory at Lorient.

Galtier is hoping to recover striker Mevlut Erdinc, who is doubtful with a hamstring injury.

Colombian midfielder Fredy Guarin is set to play against his former club while Mazzarri will be without injured players Hugo Campagnaro, Danilo D'Ambrosio, Yuto Nagatomo and Daniel Osvaldo.