Is Correa really a phoenix from the flames?

Admittedly, it was a beautiful performance from Joaquin Correa against Hellas Verona not long ago, but let us be clear: this showcased a small reminder of ability masked with a thousand questions. Simone Inzaghi has been praised for getting the best out of his deep squad; however, whilst rummaging for watch straps, he found a Rolex face. This isn’t the case. Let us remember that when Correa scored against Hellas, it was a full 756 days since he last netted for the Nerazzurri, and he has hardly featured. What is more questionable is that Simone knew him from Lazio, so who is Correa today?

You don’t have to be a grumpy old man to be sick of hyperbole. The Corriere Dello Sport was somewhat guilty of this, and the theories that his season is ‘resurrected’ or he is then a player ‘reborn’ are far from proven. The display against Hellas was impressive, Correa was good at the Bentegodi (more on that later) yet it was a rare outing for the Argentine forward. Three appearances thus far this campaign, all off the bench, total a disappointing 45 minutes of football so far. This, in a squad utilised well by ‘The Mister’, offers the theory that this was a desperation move rather than a moment of genius. However, as highlighted by the best football betting sites UK, the Nerazzurri remain the most credible title contender this season, primarily due to their squad’s depth.

Correa’s performance in Verona was sublime. Joaquin is still only 30 years of age, and he scored a beautiful opener before grabbing two assists and hitting the crossbar twice. It was a performance that surpassed some of his best at Lazio, and rather than embrace him, Inzaghi must have wanted to wring his neck, wondering why this was not a consistent trait. Most of Italy was shocked that he remained at Inter after a poor, 12-game dry spell at Marseille and the media at the time assumed he was stuck as nobody would take him. His ten goals in 56 games aren’t horrendous for Inter, but in three years, there is hardly anything to show off with back in Juan Bautista Alberdi.

‘El Tuco’ may prove us all wrong and have an Indian summer providing quality that Inter have lacked. After all he has pace, good ball control, he is primarily used as a deep-lying forward or supporting striker but can also play as a left winger or center-forward and has agility and ever so often a nose for goal. If he can replicate these fleeting and yet brilliant performances, he could be the unsung hero of Inter’s campaign, especially if they go deep into the competitions they are fighting for.

The question remains: where is the evidence? Why now, Why not before and why, with a coach who used to invest so much in him, has he featured so little? Statistics show that he has only missed 29 possible games in his time at Inter through injuries, most of which were caused by one hamstring problem.

This isn’t the reason. He is meant to be grounded and sensible, mature and liked. He has the ability, still has his pace and showcased his ability again this weekend. So, what is wrong? The answer is that this is Inzaghi’s problem, and he will probably have given up on it by this weekend. Now, he has to re-look at this as he will be asked the question. Maybe rather than ‘El Tuco’, his nickname should be ‘Rubix Cube’; he is an excellent toy with satisfying results if you can solve the problem.

@RichHall80