Milan Škriniar

Okay.

Milan Skriniar.

So like inter Milan PSG, Nathan Ake, uh, Nathan Ake, undeniably undisputedly Fox, right? No, that is true.

Uh, some English fellow named Archie Brown.

Just four minutes in, August Aydin put them ahead with a strike from outside the box.

assisted by Milan Skriniar, and their lead was doubled.

By minute 11, Mason Greenwood found the back of the net, following an assist from Neil Sincinita.

Fenerbahce held a two-goal advantage before 15 minutes had even passed, but Slavia Prague responded.

He was at the peak of his powers when Inter bought him, and it was Stefan de Vrij.

Every other defender, whether it's Acerbi or Škriniar or Bastoni, they were up and coming, or they had passed their best, or they were coming down and still had quality to give.

Now, that is also an issue.

Whilst in midfield in attack, Inter have managed to buy players that were in the peak of their powers or becau- or, or, or just about going up there.

Whilst I know that isn't geriatric in footballing terms, but when you have a team and key players that have dominated the team who are in their 30s, does that make a difference? Is that an excuse maybe for the 6-0 battering at Villa Park?

I don't feel like it is because I feel like one of the things like there's enough pedigree like Nathan Ake and Milan Skriniar has really experienced center half pairing but they're not geriatrics like they're not in the late 30s and they're flanked by two really athletic fullbacks in Semedo and Brown and you've got an experienced elite level goalkeeper behind them that should be a defensive unit that should be solid enough that you can go on away games, maybe not against the likes of Barcelona and Bayern and stuff, but against good, solid European teams like Aston Villa and not get humiliated.

And I do wonder if there's something systemic about the way football is played in the Turkish league.

I mean, one of the reasons it's, it's a lot, it's a very fun league to watch.

But I don't know if it was that, you know.

I think...

I just look at the fact that some of the players that they've bet big on and Skriniar, who is still a very good on-ball defender, but...

I mean, Nicholas Jackson had him on toast.

We had, the only person who was really able to do that outside of Buendia really was Morgan Rogers, and if you get your striker doing that, it gives you this a- added extra because if he can start to score goals from outside the box and then get goals from inside the box, and then is able to run off the, off the shoulder, you know, people start having the game plan for you very, very quickly then as a striker.

And as you said, even though it is a lonely furrow up top, you know, Nathan Aké is no mug, Skriniar is no mug.

Yeah, yeah, agreed.

They found it a to- they found it a tough going tonight and, and unfortunately for Archie Brown in one way, being a Birmingham boy, he didn't have a good game at all tonight at left back at all.

McGinn is dreadful-

Yeah

... at defending the back post, and it was McGinn and Cash got caught with Veretout and Mariqui, and, and Skriniar, I think it was, on the back post from a short corner.

Everybody came out.

De Vrij was probably the last one.

Skriniar became a star at Inter.

De Vrij was already an established Serie A defender, quality Serie A defender when he joined Inter.

But since then, Inter have, have bought players that, that are either g- up and coming, will become good, or are past their best and on their way down to give some st- stability to that defense.