Who is Simone Inzaghi? Learn About His Transformative Tactics

Italian managers are known for their tactical approach towards the game. From the likes of Carlo Ancelotti, who won multiple trophies across different leagues, to Roberto Mancini, who has both club and international accolades, the history of football managers has been graced by some of the top Italian names. And now it seems the world is in for a treat to see another legendary manager in its making.

While the spotlight has been on some of the popular names in modern football, current Inter manager Simone Inzaghi’s output in recent years puts him on the pedestal of being one of the tactical geniuses in modern football. The expectations were already higher for the Inter boss when he took over the club from Antonio Conte. Inter had just won the Serie A title, and while the fans were skeptical of his abilities, Inzaghi’s introduction of tactical identity helped Nerazzurri to secure multiple trophies and become a dominant force in recent European competitions.

While the Italian manager began his managerial career with Lazio back in 2016, his approach and tactics have changed drastically over the years. The evolution of Simone Inzaghi’s tactics and his vision of the game has allowed Inter Milan to win multiple trophies. But the question of how Simone Inzaghi’s tactics changed over the years remains to be a conversation up for debate.

Simone Inzaghi Style of Play and Tactics

While during their professional football playing days, it was Filippo Inzaghi, the elder brother of Simone Inzaghi, who was the more successful player, when it comes to their managerial careers, it seems that the younger brother, Simone, has the upper hand. As of right now, Inter are aiming to secure another Serie A title this campaign with Napoli just above them with an extra point and Atalanta following suit in 3rd place.

This season’s highlight for Inter Milan is their counterattacking. With that, they plan to leverage the strengths to reclaim the Serie A crown. The Inter Milan manager is famous for his methodical and fluid philosophy when it comes to the tactics. At the core of this tactic, there is a 3-5-2 formation. It is a structure that Simone has consistently used during his Lazio days. The formation enables flexibility both in attack and defense while maximizing the effectiveness of wing-backs and central midfielders.

That being said, without the tweaks that Simone has made with his players and the formation, there are massive rooms for other teams to exploit in the formation. If we are to look at the general style of play, Inzaghi’s Inter is possession-oriented. However, they are not keen on keeping the ball to themselves without going forward. The idea is to have the ball to themselves while efficiently and quickly moving forward. The overload in the wide areas naturally allows more space in the center as the opponents’ lines are stretched out. While the wing backs arguably have the most important role, both in terms of offense and defense.

Similarly, Inzaghi also puts a strong emphasis on discipline and teamwork. On multiple occasions, it is visible that his team moves in a synchronized manner while they are transitioning. Their implementation of compact defense makes it extremely difficult for the opponents to break through the block. Even though Inter has been the better side when it comes to settled possession, they are at their best during counter-attacking scenarios.

The Inter manager prefers the build-up play in his team to start from the back with the central CB acting as the deep-lying playmaker to initiate attacks. The defenders on each side of him act as wing-backs who are generally positioned higher up on the pitch. It becomes easier as the midfielder drops deep to help with the link-up play before they move forward. Things get extra interesting in the midfield, where there are multiple angles for ball circulation.

It is common to see Calhanoglu drop deep and help with the team’s tempo while Mkhitarayan and Barella help with their movement in between the midfield and defensive lines of the opposition. This kind of dynamic build-up allows Simone’s team to break compact defensive blocks with ease. As mentioned earlier, when it comes to defense, Inter generally falls into the compact defense tactic. They make a 5-3-2 shape with the wing backs dropping down to provide more width in the defense line. The midfielders close down the passing lane, and once they win the ball, they launch counterattacks that end up with a goal for their team.

In contrast to how he used to play his team at Lazio, Simone’s tactics changed drastically. He has refined the defense of Inter Milan and made this team one of the best defensive squads in Serie A, if not the whole of Europe.

Simone Inzaghi Tactics Comparison & Evolution: Lazio vs Inter Milan

When you look at Simone Inzaghi’s Lazio and Inter teams side by side, you might not see a lot of difference in terms of formation and tactics. The one difference you might notice is in the outcome, but if you focus on the transition between these two teams, it will make sense why Inter is superior to Lazio.

Back at Lazio, Simone’s 3-5-2 formation heavily relied on quick counters and the individual brilliance of some players in the squad. That team was famous for launching quick counterattacks after absorbing pressure. The Lazio side was less possession-reliant and focused more on exploiting the weaknesses of the opposition through rapid forward play. The wing-backs in Lazio moved high beyond the midfield unit of the opposition. Due to this, they were also positioned to support the direct passes into the front line.

Lucas Leiva, one of the deepest pivots of Lazio, would operate ahead of the middle center-back. Whenever he dropped deep between the center-backs, the number of midfielders in the team would adapt to their surroundings and set themself to the approach that is being considered at that moment. Moreover, Simone also gave the green light for the players up top to be creative. In addition to that, the wing-backs in that team were more attack-heavy, and they lacked in terms of their defensive abilities. It left the team vulnerable to a counter. So, while Lazio were great in offensive play under Inzaghi, they were vulnerable when it came to defense.

Even though his arrival at Inter followed the same formation, there was more control in Inter’s play, and there was the right balance within the team that allowed them to excel in Serie A and Europe. With more technically gifted midfielders and defenders, Inzaghi implemented a more sophisticated build-up phase. In Inter, Dumfries and Dimarco play arguably the most crucial parts both in offense and defense.

In addition to this, the midfield trio at Inter is more disciplined than Lazio. Their pressing is more aggressive, and they know when to drop deep and when to make off-the-ball runs. Under Inzaghi, Inter’s defense has been refined as well, which is why they are so comfortable with build-up plays from defense. From relying on counter-attacks to focusing on possession-based play, Inzaghi’s tactics and approach to the game have changed a lot. With his experience of all these years, it barely takes time now for the Italian manager to adapt his tactics based on the team he has in front of him.

At Inter, he has showcased different attacking patterns, enhanced game management, and better in-game tactical shifts. This kind of evolution has allowed him to not only win domestic trophies but also take the team to the UCL final in 2023 and now again in 2025. Moreover, in recent times, we have also seen improvements in how and when he makes the substitutions. Oftentimes, his proactive changes have turned the course of the game in his favor.

Safe to say, after departing from Lazio, the manager has reached new heights in terms of tactics and his vision of the game. To put it simply, Inter’s build-up play focuses on finding the gaps to begin the transitions and stretching the defensive structures of the opponents. Once stretched, they often play through the 3 disciplined and gifted midfielders. Thanks to Simone’s tactics, whenever opponents adapted to the compact defending, they could be switched towards the wide players, who would force the opposition to chase them down and leave a gap in the middle.

Trophies and Achievements as a Manager

It is not only the tactics and approach that have changed with his arrival at Inter. Ever since he signed for Nerazzurri to be the manager, Inter has achieved a lot of silverware:

Over the years, Inzaghi has consistently led his teams to strong finishes in European and domestic competitions. The trophy cabinet reflects the success he had with his clubs. If we are talking about patterns, Simone does exceptionally well in the knockout tournaments. As things stand, he is one of the fastest managers to win five trophies with Inter Milan.

Safe to say, while his big brother has been a legend in Italian football as a player, it is the younger brother who has carved his path towards managerial success. Ever since Simone took the job from Antonio Conte, the club’s approach and balance has been refined by his revolutionary 3-5-2 formation along with its tweaks.

How Simone Inzaghi’s Inter Line-Up Look Like?

It is not expected from Inzaghi to come up with massive changes in his line-up anytime soon. Generally, the team follows a 3-5-2 formation.

Goalkeeper: Yann Sommer

Defense: Alessandro Bastoni, Francesco Acerbi, Benjamin Pavard

Wing Backs: Federico Dimarco, Denzel Dumfries

Midfield Trio: Hakan Calhanoglu, Nicolo Barella, Henrikh Mkhitaryan

Forwards: Lautaro Martinez, Marcus Thuram

While the match starts with a 3-5-2 formation, as the game goes on, we get to see 3-2-5, 5-3-2, and other formations in the different parts of the game. For instance, we see Hakan Calhanoglu dropping deep on multiple occasions to help his team start building up play from the back. Moreover, when the wing-backs are forward, stretching the defense line of the opposition wide, we get to see the 3-2-5 formation. As we mentioned, there are a lot of interesting tweaks in this 3-5-2 of Inzaghi, which make them even more dangerous.

In addition to all these, Inzaghi’s tactical flexibility with the bench is also great. He utilizes subs like Marko Arnautovic, David Frattesi, and Carlos Augusto to tweak the game plans based on the opponent and time remaining in the game. The tactical flexibility here is a key feature of his coaching approach. As Inzaghi’s confidence grew with games, he is less afraid of changing the roles of players and switching formations in the middle of the game.