Speaking to Prime Video and Sky Sport after the final whistle, Simone Inzaghi commented on Inter‘s 2-0 victory over Feyenoord in the first leg of the Champions League round of 16, an outcome that has significantly smoothed the path toward qualification.
PRIME VIDEO
These fans gave us an unbelievable boost in a complicated stadium. We knew we had to suffer, and when the time came we stuck together. In 6 days, we’ve got the return leg, with a league match in between. These are the tricky challenges, but I’m very happy with the boys.
Asllani and Zielinski? They did exactly what I asked of them, I never had doubts. As a coach you must always make choices, but they had an excellent game. Calha and Mkhi played just three days ago in Naples. I tried to make some changes without overturning everything. I’m pleased with this match and we must keep going this way.
Our opponents have quality; they played with four attacking players. Initially, we didn’t manage our distances perfectly and didn’t keep possession as we can, and against these teams in this kind of environment, you can suffer. The two goals made it easier for us to win an important match. However, we know we’ve just won the first half, the second half will be next Tuesday at San Siro.
SKY SPORT
We knew we had to play a great game and we did well. We expected a physically dynamic side, starting aggressively. We defended well and found the opening goal. Clearly, the second half became easier as we improved, and their pressing wasn’t as intense as it was at the beginning. We’ve won the first round, but there will be another, and we’ve got another match before that. We must keep moving forward, aware of our objectives in every competition. It’s also fair to be evaluated every two-and-a-half days—it’s part of the job.
Probability of qualifying? I’m not good at that. We have two goals to our advantage, but we know we’ll have to be smart in the return leg because they’re dangerous. They scored three goals against Manchester and have always performed well in the Champions League. We’ll need to stay cautious, just like we did tonight.
We know the importance of our forwards in our system. Thuram has been carrying a lingering problem, but tonight he performed very well. Beyond Thuram and Lautaro, we have Arnautovic and Taremi, who are also dealing with some issues but are improving. In the league, there’s also Correa. In our system, the forwards are crucial—when they’re doing well, the whole team does well.
Was Feyenoord-Milan a valuable reference point? Yes, it was important, even though Feyenoord played with a different system, as Paixao played wide then and today behind the striker. Today, they fielded four forwards and we adjusted a few details during this morning’s video analysis. Certainly, the two games against Milan gave us useful insights.
