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Conte will not use Inter injuries as an excuse
Antonio Conte says Inter cannot use injuries as an excuse as they aim to finish the year top of Serie A.
Inter are winless in three games across all competitions, crashing out of the Champions League and being leapfrogged by champions Juventus in the table.
Alexis Sanchez, Stefano Sensi, Nicolo Barella, Roberto Gagliardini, Antonio Candreva and Kwadwo Asamoah are all expected to miss Saturday's home game against Genoa.
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Conte indicated he will give players every chance to recover in time for the match but he is not going to gamble on players' fitness ahead of the mid-season break.
"There is still a [training] session to go. We will not take risks," he told reporters on Friday. "We have Brozo [Marcelo Brozovic] and Lautaro [Martinez] suspended too.
"We are short on players but will give our all. We will not use this as an excuse. We will give everything we have, I am sure. The fans will play their part too against Genoa.
"I was worried about the situation in the past. We have had lots of players out and it has not been easy. I have had to always rely on the same players. I could not rotate my squad. But let us get to the break and then we will see."
Inter being without on-loan forward Sanchez has been particularly key, the Chile international having been out of action for two months.
"The injury was a real blow to Sanchez and for us," Conte added. "In this time, I have always had to rely on Lautaro and [Romelu] Lukaku.
"They have always been available and have done a good job. [Sebastiano] Esposito has also grown as a player too. But Sanchez cannot wait to get playing again.
"He is very competitive, he is chomping at the bit. We will need to respect the recovery time. The medical staff will keep us posted. I am certain he will be back soon and he will help us."
| LIVE!Antonio Conte speaking from Appiano Gentile on the eve of #InterGenoahttps://t.co/vPbNROI2bI— Inter (@Inter_en) December 20, 2019
Asked to reflect on his time at the club so far going into the break, Conte said: "The more time goes by, the more I am part of the club. We have been working hard and giving our all.
"There have been challenges and difficulties along the way so far, but I knew it would not be easy and that this was the start of the process.
"We are all working hard to take this club far and to the top again. We need to leave our mark, as I have often said in the past.
"That does not necessarily mean trophies. It means laying solid foundations as a club. It means instilling the right work ethic and culture."
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