Leonardo’s Home League Form Offers Inter Plenty Optimism

Having lost their grip on the Champions League and Serie A, Inter will be hoping to end the season on a positive note by clinching some silverware in the Italian Cup Final against Palermo later in the month. It’s been a topsy-turvy campaign for the Nerazzurri with Jose Mourinho departing for Madrid and Rafa Benitez failing to replicate the form that made his predecessor such an overwhelming success.

There are, however, definite reasons for optimism under Leonardo, with further inspection of their home league form since his late December appointment showing a real invincibility that bodes well for the side as they look to regain the tile from rivals Milan next season.

Prior to Leonardo’s arrival, Benitez had managed just one win in the previous five at the San Siro, with an improvement in the side’s performances in front of their own fans essential. Since his first home league game in charge against Napoli, Leonardo’s record is faultless: Played 11, Won 11, Drawn 0, Lost 0, Goals For 32 Goals Against 13, Points 33.

Typically set up in a 4-1-2-1-2 formation with the impetus very much on attack, the side have averaged virtually 3 goals per home game since the Brazilian‘s installation. This is illustrated in the Average Positions of the players in the 3-2 victory over Palermo; with so little width offered from midfield, the full-backs, Maicon and Davide Santon, played so far forward it subsequently left plenty spaces for the opposition to exploit when moves broke down.

This vulnerability at the back means Inter have chalked up just 3 Clean Sheets in those 11 games. This weakness is proving critical on the road, where Leonardo’s league record reads: Played 10, Won 5, Drawn 1, Lost 4, Goals For 13 Goals Against 13, Points 16. With just 2 Clean Sheets on their travels, it’s clear that tightening up at the back away from home will prove the key to Inter’s success in the 2011/2012 season.

Leonardo certainly has the personnel at his disposal; our Serie A Team of the Season so far contains no less than four Inter players, while champions Milan offer only two of the league’s Best XI. Here’s a look at those consistent performers for Inter:

Maicon Average Rating 7.35
Maicon is anything but a conventional defender; with 8 Assists, the right-back is second top for his team this season. Further example of his creative importance is an average of 2.19 Key Passes per game, only bettered by playmaker Wesley Sneijder. He whips in more Successful Crosses than any Inter player, with 2 per game and his Passing Accuracy comes in at 84%.

His Shots per game ratio is impressive, too; Maicon 1.2 efforts on average suggesting, if anything, he should be doing better than just 1 Goal so far. He makes 1.1 Successful Dribbles every match, bombing on to assist the attacks.

An average of 1.7 Successful Tackles, 1.7 Interceptions and 2.8 Clearances every game sees Maicon help out defensively, too, indicative of his energy and drive down the Inter right flank.

Lucio Average Rating 7.49
The attacking nature of the side means Lucio’s presence in the heart of defence is absolutely crucial. Time and again, he breaks up opposition attacks, making more Tackles (2.9), and Interceptions (4.9) than any Inter player and with an average of 6.4 Clearances and 0.7 Blocked Shots, it’s easy to see his level of involvement at the back.

His distribution is impressive (86%) and bringing the ball out of defence to start attacks, he makes 1.3 Dribbles per game, the fourth highest of the side.

Wesley Sneijder Average Rating 7.35
The Dutchman has been unlucky this season; a look at his stats suggest Sneijder could easily have more than the 4 Goals and 5 Assists he currently stands on. Sitting in the hole behind a front two, he doesn’t run with the ball excessively (just 1.1 Successful Dribble per game) as his eye for a killer ball means he has 2.88 Key Passes per game, far and away the team’s major creative force.

When it comes to Shots, Sneijder is the biggest threat for Inter again. He averages 3 efforts per game -the third highest in the league- and, given he’s had 22 appearances, should have hit the back of the net on more than just 4 occasions.

Samuel Eto’o Average Rating 7.62
Luckily for the likes of Sneijder, Samual Eto’o has had little trouble finding the net this season. The Cameroonian has scored 20 of Inter‘s 65 Goals, averaging 2.5 Shots per game.

Not only the club’s top scorer, Eto’o has the most Assists, with 9, a result of his 1.82 Key Passes every match. He also makes the most Successful Dribbles for Inter, averaging 2.8, and has proved to be a real handful for Serie A back-fours.

Inter’s top-rated player, Eto’o is second only to Udinese’s Antonio Di Natale in our Serie A standings this season.