Real Salt Lake vs. Inter Milan
International Friendly
July 19, 2016; Rio Tinto Stadium
Tickets available Here
Italian powerhouse Inter Milan is set to visit the Wasatch Front on Tuesday on the first stop of its US Tour. With the first European team to face Real Salt Lake on the grounds of Rio Tinto Stadium, here’s a look at a few key players to watch from the visiting side.
Mauro Icardi (above): This agile, tactical, and technical striker will be one for RSL to keep tabs on the entire night. Born in Rosario, Argentina, Icardi began his quest for footballing glory very early on, moving to Spain’s Canary Islands. He began playing football at age six with Vecindario, scoring over 500 goals while in the youth ranks. Exploding onto the footballing scene, giants such as Barcelona, Real Madrid, Liverpool and Arsenal fought for his services, with Catalan giants Barcelona eventually winning over the Argentinian.
As he progressed through his time at Barcelona, Italian club Sampdoria began to look his way. In January of 2011, the club confirmed Icardi had been acquired on loan until the end of the 2011 season. After scoring 13 goals in 19 games for la Samp, his option to buy was exercised and a three-year deal was put into place.
Scoring 11 goals in 33 appearances for Sampdoria, Italian goliaths Internazionale signed Icardi in 2013, saying the move to San Siro was “a dream come true”. Making his debut in August 2013, Icardi has been a mainstay in the Inter lineup scoring 47 goals in 127 total appearances for the club. During the 2014/15 campaign he tallied 22 goals earning himself a share of the Serie A golden boot title. At 23 years old he serves as the captain of the Nerazzurri.
Icardi has been subject to a plethora of transfer rumors since the July window opened but Head Coach Roberto Mancini has paid no mind to the rumors and says the striker is to stay with the club.
Stevan Jovetić: The creative and technical Montenegrin attacking midfielder will look to spring forward and run at RSL’s defense to create scoring chances. Beginning his career with FK Partizan in Serbia, the 26-year-old won both the Serbian Cup and Serbian Superliga in his time with the club.
In 2008 Jovetić moved to Italian club ACF Firoentina, scoring 40 times in 134 total matches for the La Viola. After missing the entire 2010/11 season due to injury, he returned to a 2011/12 campaign in stunning fashion scoring a double in his first game back in over a years time.
After five successful seasons at Firoentina, the blue side of Manchester, England came calling. Jovetić signed a 22 million pound contract in July 2013, scoring eight goals for The Citizens in his two seasons with the club.
After the signing of Wilfred Bony to Manchester City in early 2015 Jovetić felt he no longer had a place in the team, prompting a 2.5 million pound loan move to Internazionale. Although recent injuries have slowed him down, when he is healthy he is a constant fixture in the starting eleven for the blue and black.
With his ability to link up with players anywhere on the field makes him one of the most versatile players in Serie A. Pair that with his pace on the ball and finishing abilities he is always a player for defenders to keep an eye on.
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Samir Handanovic: The 6’3” Slovenian goalkeeper is Inter’s big man in net and will be looking to build on his 15 clean sheets from last year’s Serie A season. Handanovic has at times been hailed as one of the best goalkeepers of his generation and at 32 years of age he shows no signs of slowing down.
Beginning his career with Slovan, he gained attention from several major clubs around the world and landed with Serie A side Udinese in the summer of 2004 at the mere age of 20. During his time with the club he was loaned out on a number of occasions early on, making it difficult for him to cement his place in the starting eleven.
In 2012 he was bought by Inter to take over the starting duties for the incumbent Júlio César. Handanovic made his debut for Inter in August of 2012 and in the same year appeared on the top ten IFFHS Goalkeepers of the world landing at number eight.
Handanovic has made a grand total of 169 appearances for the Nerazzurri and over 300 Serie A appearances. RSL will have to have their shooting boots on when Handanovic steps into goal when Inter are in town.
