Inter Milan boss Rafa Benitez has given his full backing to under-fire striker Diego Milito.
Inter boss happy with striker's overall contribution despite no goals
Inter Milan boss Rafa Benitez has given his full backing to under-fire striker Diego Milito.
The Argentine was in top form last season, netting a brace as Inter beat Bayern Munich 2-0 to lift the UEFA Champions League in May.
But the hot-shot has yet to reproduce that form so far this term, failing to find the net in all five official games this season.
His latest blank came in the 2-2 Champions League draw against FC Twente on Tuesday, although he created the opening goal for Wesley Sneijder to drill home.
But on the down side, he headed in Theo Janssen's corner for an own goal on 31 minutes before being substituted by Benitez near the final whistle.
While he failed to score at the right end, the Inter boss declared himself happy with the 31-year-old's overall contribution.
Benitez said: "I'm happy with his work, he did what I asked him to do which is what he had to do when we didn't have possession. Overall I'm happy with how he played."
Better
Milito knows he can do better, although he believes he is gradually getting back to his best.
"My contribution to the first goal is not enough to satisfy me," he said. "I'm a bit behind physically, I'm lacking a bit of sparkle.
"We got back late from the World Cup and we didn't have a big pre-season, instead we started playing straight away.
"But I'll get there slowly. We always work hard to win something important, everyone together as a team. That's what brought us success last year."
Milito also believes it was a good draw on the road against the Champions League debutants.
"It's a great point against a tough team but we were unlucky in two incidents," he said.
Milito's strike partner Samuel Eto'o, who bagged the reigning champions' second goal, also believed the point was positive.
"I would have preferred to win but a point in an away game is always good," he said.
"We're getting better in every game and that's a good sign. Now we have to concentrate on the league again and think about Palermo because Sunday won't be an easy game."
Cambiasso positive
Midfielder Esteban Cambiasso, who hit the bar in the first half against Twente, said Inter must look to the positives.
"It's not the result we wanted but we were playing away and we didn't lose," he said.
"We've got two more away games and three more at home so we hope to get more points."
However, the Argentine did acknowledge that they had not managed to deal with Twente's threat at set-pieces - the Dutch champions scored direct from a free-kick through Janssen and then from a corner.
"We knew they would be dangerous at set-pieces, they really wanted to prove their worth and sometimes you concede these goals.
"But we have to stay calm and think about the next games."
