Chivu hoping Inter ‘dominate’ opposition at Club World Cup

Inter Milan coach Cristian Chivu said he wants to forge a team that can dominate opponents ahead of their second Club World Cup clash against Japan’s Urawa Red Diamonds on Saturday in Group E.

The Italians, runners-up in this year’s UEFA Champions League, were held to a surprise 1-1 draw by Mexican outfit Monterrey in their opening game at FIFA’s new tournament on Tuesday.

Chivu, who took over from Simone Inzaghi after the Italian departed for Al-Hilal in the wake of the Champions League final loss to Paris Saint-Germain, said he would like a team that can take control of matches.

“I think every coach would love a team that dominates because you need to show your technical ability, you need to show character and personality,” explained the former Inter defender.

“You need to show that you can dominate the ball, that you can set the tempo, that you can find solutions both when you are moving the ball from side to side and when you’re playing a bit more direct.

“That’s the dream of all coaches, having the game by the scruff of the neck, controlling proceedings.”

Chivu said it would be good if his team could start to show that against Urawa in Seattle, but accepted it might take a bit longer given his recent arrival at the club.

“That’s what we’d like to do in the near future, maybe even from tomorrow onwards, but even in the near future when we’ll have a little bit more time to work on things in a certain way,” the Romanian added.