Inter Milan manager Frank De Boer has leapt to the defence of club-captain Mauro Icardi, claiming that he is a 'fantastic player' that makes a 'great contribution to the team' in spite of his recent fallout with Inter's ultras.
The Argentine forward ended a nightmarish couple of weeks by scoring two goals in the 2-1 win over Torino on Wednesday.
The 23-year-old had been under intense pressure from the San Siro faithful after he appeared to criticise and threaten the club's ultras in his autobiography.
And although Icardi single-handedly won the game for his side on Wednesday, the supporters have refused to forgive him, flying a banner with the slogan: "Mauro Icardi is not our captain - not now, not ever"
But De Boer insists he wants to focus what is happening on the field, stating that Icardi is still a 'fantastic player'.
Mauro Icardi has now scored 8 goals from just 10 shots on target for Inter in Serie A this season.
Superb record. pic.twitter.com/vlp2qAymIB
"Icardi? I always said I think he is a fantastic player that can make a great contribution to the team," De Boer said, as quoted by "?ESPN.
"OK, with the book [Icardi's autobiography], it did not go so great, but on the pitch he always gives the maximum."
The result also alleviates some of the pressure on manager Frank De Boer after the Dutchman got off to a poor start in Serie A.
Inter's win sees them move up to 10th with ten games played and De Boer wants to see the same attitude from his players when they face Sampdoria this weekend.
"Do I feel safer after this victory? A little," he added. "We have to win games and for me it is also very important how you win games. Against Sampdoria [Inter's next opponents] we have to play with the same attitude that we had today and take no steps back.
"The support of the board is very important, but it is all about the attitude of the team and today it was the right one. I always thought positively, even if the times were hard. I worked hard as always and the result of that was today.
"I have great confidence in the team and I also thank the fans who have supported me so much, as well as the players during the game. Beyond the result, I saw a good performance and a very united team."
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