THEInter back in the race, the Milan it's almost out. These are the verdicts on Tuesday in the Champions League, following the Nerazzurri's success against the Moldovan Sheriff (3-1) and the Rossoneri's defeat at Porto (1-0). Mind you, there's nothing definitive and it couldn't be otherwise with 3 more days to play, but it's clear that the rankings are starting to take shape, in one sense or another.
Il knockout of Pioli's team it is very heavy, perhaps even decisive, because unless there are twists and turns it will be very difficult to get back in the running for qualification, even if Liverpool's 2-3 draw in Madrid still keeps a flame of hope burning. Once again, just like with Atletico, Milan can complain loudly for an referee error, given that Porto's goal stems from an obvious foul by Taremi on Bennacer, but unlike then there is no great performance to be attached to the protests, indeed: the result, net of the episode, reflects what was seen on the pitch.
"We were in trouble, they did better in terms of lucidity, technique and how they held the field - he admitted bluntly the Rossoneri coach – We had to manage the ball much better, there were situations to create dangers, but we didn't succeed. Absences? That's not the question, the team was balanced and competitive, but they did better than us."
No recriminations, in short, though Brych's mistake on Luis Diaz's goal (65') remains very serious, especially with the presence of the Var. Milan, however, takes a clear step backwards from the point of view of performance, regardless of the numerous absences. We expected a courageous, brilliant corsair team, but instead Porto dominated the match, nullifying any Rossoneri ambitions, from start to finish. Pioli hoped at least to bring home a draw which, in the light of Atletico's defeat, would have had considerable value, but in the end he has to deal with the third defeat in as many games, but above all with an almost desperate.
Not so for Inter, which gets the first victory of the season in the Champions League against the freshman Sheriff and gets back in the running for the passage of the shift. Now, thanks to the great success of Real Madrid on the field of Shakhtar (0-5), the group is once again compact, with the Spaniards and Moldovans paired in the lead on 6 odds and the Nerazzurri immediately behind on 4: a win in the next match against Sheriff would overturn everything, bringing Inzaghi's team back to the eighth area. At San Siro there was only one result available and it came at the end of a convincing match, in which Inter were able to raise their voice despite considerable pressure.
He thought about unlocking the impasse Dzeko, author of a great left-footed volley on the development of a corner kick (34'), but then the Moldavians, driven by a mix of lightness and madness, found the equalizer with a free-kick from Thill (52'), already executioner of Real in the previous round. In short, everything needs to be redone, but luckily for Inzaghi he has risen to the chair Vidal (58 '), who threw an assist from the usual Dzeko on goal, finding a goal in the Champions League that he had been missing since 12 April 2017, when he wore the Bayern Munich shirt.
From then on, the match went downhill, also because Inter immediately made it 3-1 with a handful of The free (67'), before touching the fourth with Lautaro Martinez and Sensi. Not bad, because what counted was winning and the Nerazzurri did it with merit, thus getting back in full swing for the next round.
“We made the match we had to play, they came from two victories against Shakhtar and Real Madrid – the analysis of Inzaghi – We were a team, we created a lot, got two posts and a crossbar. We can still improve a lot even if we played an excellent game. It's a pleasure to see this team play, goals are few for what we've created. We certainly played excellent football, but we could have scored again in the first half."
Now the Nerazzurri coach will be able to focus more serenely on Juve, their opponents in the next round of the championship, while Pioli will have to reset his team's mind and shift the focus to Bologna, in the hope of rediscovering the brilliance he missed yesterday.
