This time Inter's Madrid is decidedly bitter. Inzaghi he hoped to revive the glories of 2010, when the Nerazzurri won the Champions League in the Spanish capital, but the Wanda Metropolitano evidently isn't doing as well as the Bernabeu. Atletico is the one celebrating, having advanced to the quarter-finals after a battle of monstrous intensity in which absolutely everything happened, in perfect Simeone's style. Italian football thus remains cut off from the most important cup and complicates the race for an additional place for next season: only Europe and the Conference League will be able to help it (the UEFA Ranking does not differentiate between competitions), but if tonight we were to lose other pieces (in Milan, Roma, Atalanta and Fiorentina) would be really trouble.
Atletico Madrid – Inter 2-1: Simeone comes back from Inzaghi, then eliminates him on penalties
Atletico and Inter gave a great night of the Champions League, offering everything befitting a stage of this level: pace, spectacle, intensity, opportunities and twists. Simeone's Colchoneros won it at the end of a comeback (or remuntada, given the context) which ended in penalties, but the Nerazzurri can only wallow in the regrets of a qualification, in some ways, thrown to the wind. The discussion does not refer so much to the 1-0 at San Siro, but to that of the Wanda Metropolitano: it was Inzaghi's team, in fact, who took the lead first with Dimarco (33'), at the end of a splendid move on the Bastoni-Barella axis. Atletico, who started strong but settled down as the minutes went by, were on the edge of the precipice and calm management would have been more than enough to bring them down, but instead Inter got distracted and Griezmann, just two minutes later, beat them put back into the game. But the biggest mistake, the red pencil one, was made by Thuram a quarter of an hour from the end, when the Spaniards were unbalanced forward in search of a goal they couldn't find: the Frenchman, face to face you with Oblak, shot in the corner, leaving the Cholo gang alive. Which played his part and not only for the electricity transmitted to the Wanda Metropolitano, but with the changes that shifted the inertia from his side. The entrances of Correa and, above all, Depay proved decisive, because the Dutchman, after hitting a sensational post in the 85th minute, turned on De Vrij and punctured Sommer (87'), prolonging the match by one minute. another good half hour, even if Riquelme, in full recovery, could have even closed it. Bad news for Inzaghi, given that his team had been running out of fuel for a while: Simone tried to inject it from the bench (inside Darmian, Acerbi, Bisseck, Frattesi, Sanchez and Klaassen), but was betrayed by his most senior men. important, perhaps too squeezed by his allergy to turnover (having made the starters play in Bologna, in hindsight, was a mistake). And so the tightest match of these round of XNUMX was decided on penalties, where Atletico were almost flawless (goals from Depay, Riquelme and Correa, error from Saul) and Inter were simply disastrous: with the exception of the usual Calhanoglu and of a no-frills Acerbi, in fact, the others kicked very badly, with Sanchez and Klaassen blocked by Oblak and Lautaro even at the stars.
Inzaghi: "We had qualification in hand, this defeat must burn us"
“This team is not used to losing, but the defeat must sting given that we had qualification in hand – confirmed Inzaghi in the press conference -. It's sad, but I'm super proud to coach this group. We exited the Champions League and the Italian Cup after extra time and penalties, now there are 10 games left in the championship and we have to reach a very important goal. There is disappointment for the club and the fans, but the boys must be proud of what they did in the Champions League, in 8 games we have never lost. In the second half we should have done better, in extra time we had the game in hand and made a lot of mistakes. You don't give up an inch, I complimented the players and they should be proud of what they did."
Europe and Conference League: tonight Milan, Roma, Atalanta and Fiorentina
Italian football is left with "only" Europe and the Conference League, which will feature Milan, Roma, Atalanta and Fiorentina. We start with the Rossoneri's away match in Prague (18.45pm, Sky, Dazn and Now), against a very motivated Slavia after the good performance in the first leg. The final 4-2, in fact, did not close the game at all and the fact that the Czechs are remaining with 10 players for over an hour only fuels hopes of a comeback. Much, however, will depend on the Devil and his hunger for qualification, absolutely necessary in a season, so far, stingy with satisfaction and further grayed by the investigation by the Milan Prosecutor's Office into the transfer of ownership from Elliot to Red Bird. The match in Bergamo between Atalanta and Sporting Lisbon is even more in the balance (21pm, Sky, Dazn and Now), given that the 1-1 draw in the first leg, in fact, leaves everything in total balance. The Portuguese, first in the league ahead of Benfica and Porto, are certainly not a soft opponent, but the same goes for the Goddess, determined to play her cards to the hilt. Huge advantage instead for De Rossi's Roma, on stage in Brighton (21pm, Tv8, Sky, Dazn and Now) after the 4-0 at the Olimpico di last week. In Europe, it is worth underlining, you should never take anything for granted, especially when you go to an English pitch, but denying that the Giallorossi already have a (large) foot in the quarter-finals would be almost grotesque. Finally Italian's Fiorentina, awaiting the Conference match against Maccabi Haifa (18.45pm, Sky, Dazn and Now). We start from 4-3 in the first leg, therefore with a lead of just one goal: not enough to already feel like they are in the quarter-finals, but a good start to continue dreaming of the Conference.
