Pressure on Inter ahead of Fiorentina clash – Sousa

Fiorentina coach Paulo Sousa says all the pressure will be on leaders Inter when two of Serie A’s form sides meet at San Siro on Sunday.

Roberto Mancini’s Inter have taken maximum points from their opening five games and conceded just once in the league, bolstering talk of a sustained title challenge.

A hard-fought 1-0 win over Chievo on Sunday was followed by another against Verona in midweek, although Sousa’s Fiorentina are set to offer another stern challenge, sat second going into Serie A’s sixth round of fixtures.

Although Fiorentina have also enjoyed a strong start to their campaign, Sousa says it is Inter who will need to deal with the pressure rather than his side.

Asked who was under the most scrutiny this weekend, he told reporters: “Without a doubt Inter. However, I don’t think that will necessarily be an advantage for us.

“All games are important and we treat this one no differently. Inter are a balanced side with no gaps between sections.

“They take the initiative and have top players who can make the difference at crucial moments.

“As for Fiorentina, we have always been courageous and have tried to build good moves, even if our opponents at times don’t allow us to.

“It’s up to us to stay balanced but we know what football is like, especially in a passionate city like Florence. We have to turn all that is negative into a positive. We need to get close to the teams that have more chances than us [for the Scudetto].

“The tests come every day but the biggest barometer for a football team is the game itself. This is an important barometer for all of us, it will give us the directions to grow. 

“It is these sort of matches that give us an idea of where we are and what we want to do – the road that we must travel.”