Inter Milan vs Catania preview - Milito: We are behind Ranieri

Posted Sunday, March 04, 2012 by PA

Inter Milan coach Claudio Ranieri has received the backing of his players after four consecutive defeats.

The Nerazzurri go into Sunday's game against Catania having endured a dismal February, with last weekend's 1-0 loss at Napoli their fifth defeat in six league games.

Inter are also trailing 1-0 in their Champions League last 16 tie with Marseille.

Their recent setbacks have put further pressure on Ranieri, who joined Inter in September after the sacking of Giampiero Gasperini.

"We are all behind Ranieri," Inter striker Diego Milito said.

"We know the first person to pay for bad results is the coach but we are the ones that go out on the pitch.

"We are all behind our coach and we will try to give our best on Sunday in order to get a much needed win.

"We cannot forget that only 13 months ago we won the (FIFA) Club World Cup.

"We just have to work hard and return to be ourselves."

In losing at Napoli, the Nerazzurri dropped to seventh in the standings, nine points behind third-placed Udinese, who hold the last Champions League qualifying spot.

A month has passed since Inter last found the back of the net.

"It's not just the fault of the strikers but of the whole team," said Inter midfielder Esteban Cambiasso.

"We don't score and we give away goals so we all have to improve in order to return to victory."

Catania, meanwhile, will look to pile further misery on Ranieri when they travel to the San Siro.

The Sicilian outfit climbed to ninth in the standings after last weekend's 3-1 success over Novara, their second successive win.

"We are in good shape and we hope we can take advantage of Inter Milan's struggles," Catania midfielder Francesco Lodi said.

"On Sunday we face an important game and a win would allow us to take a huge step towards defending our Serie A status, which remains our aim this season."

Catania, coached by Vincenzo Montella, are seven points away from reaching the 40-point mark, a figure deemed sufficient to avoid the drop.

Inter will be without striker Luc Castaignos, who serves a one-match ban.