We’d be happy if you could come with us.
Why is “potessi” (congiuntivo imperfetto) used in this sentence? I put the English translation into DeepL and it conformed the use of potessi. However, it seems like “potresti” (condizionale presente) should be used instead.
Not sure, perhaps because “could” is uncertain.
Isn’t this basically a hypothetical construction of the type “cosa faresti se fossi ricco?”.
Yes, it is an hypothetical, and the subjunctive (“congiuntivo”) is needed in this case. “Saremmo” is conjugated in the conditional mood.
Subjunctive/conjunctive usage is a difficult mood to master, even Italian native speakers get confused sometimes.
