Inter suddenly found themselves in a crisis up front in the Derby, as Lautaro Martinez has been sidelined with a thigh injury, and Francesco Pio Esposito and Ange-Yoan Bonny both came down with an illness the day before the clash. They were available despite not being 100 percent, and Christian Chivu had to tweak the scheme for the first time, employing a 3-4-2-1 that didn’t work particularly well and contributed to yet another slow start.

The coach was quizzed about adding another striker in January, and replied that they would think about it. According to Fabrizio Romano (via SOSFanta), Mauro Icardi has offered his services a few times. However, if the front office decides to add to their frontline, it won’t be him.

Eventually, Inter will target and potentially bring in a forward with different characteristics, and not a pure no.9, even though the Argentine is angling for his return and wouldn’t cost anything, as he’s a free agent.

The Nerazzurri evaluated a pair of players during the summer but elected to stand pat rather than doing something just because. Their evaluations will continue over the next month or so. Martinez will return after the break. Marcus Thuram has carried them for the most part, while Esposito and Bonny have been feast-or-famine.

Our Take on Inter Potentially Eyeing New Strikers

They were in a unique situation in the previous game and are unlikely to panic because of it. However, they could indeed intervene if their secondary marksmen don’t grow and produce enough. They have been trying to onboard a slippery attacker, who could provide a spark off the bench, perhaps handle multiple roles or lead to some tactical tweaks, for a few windows, and the time might be ripe.

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