Conte bemoans Inter's lack of killer instinct

MILAN: Inter Milan coach Antonio Conte again bemoaned his side's lack of a killer instinct after they squandered chances and drew 3-3 at home to mid-table Sassuolo on Wednesday, further denting their chances of winning Serie A.

Conte had complained about Inter's profligacy after they beat Sampdoria 2-1 on Sunday. Their performance against Sassuolo, including an open goal miss by midfielder Roberto Gagliardini, left him even more exasperated.

"There's a lot of disappointment on my part and on the part of the lads," said Conte, whose side are third and eight points behind leaders Juventus.

"When you play this kind of game and put in a great effort, and you have the chance to win it despite the difficulties, you have to put it to bed and collect three points. We didn't do it and it's disappointing, it bothers me.

"We had chances to seal the result and we didn't, and then they scored in the 89th minute, but we can't work any harder," he added. "There are situations where you have to score and today we paid dearly for our naivety."

The coach also blamed individual errors for all three of Sassuolo's goals and said there would be a lot to look at.

"Details always make all the difference," Conte said. "I repeat it daily, during training, before and during matches. The details can change the result and we have paid the consequences again."

Conte did not want to contemplate Inter's chances of winning the title in his first season at the club.

"I don't know. I can't predict it," he said. "What I want is for us to win the remaining 11 games. The mentality I want to instil in the players is to always try to get the best. Then, if there are other teams that are better than us, I take my hat off to them."