A derby of fire. The quarter-finals of the Coppa Italia give us a really delicate Inter-Milan, not only for the continuation of the tournament but also, if not above all, to understand who, between the two, will have reacted better to the disappointments of the weekend. At this point, in fact, the psychological factor can play a fundamental role, which is why neither Conte nor Pioli want to lose such a derby, with the risk of ending up in the vortex of controversy. And then there's always one up for grabs Italian Cup semifinal, a trophy snubbed at the beginning but with its own reason for arriving at the end of January, when the season begins to take on a very specific shape. Both are not presenting themselves at their best, at least mentally. The Rossoneri are recovering from the heavy defeat against Atalanta, which has turned on more than one alarm bell: losing is okay, doing it so clearly, but no.
“I think having pressure is a privilege, it means having reached a certain level – he glossed over Pioli – But now we face another competition, we care and we will do everything to get to the end, even if we know that in the league it will be different. We have the 43 points scored in the first round left, our goal now is to make an even greater effort and try to maintain the same performance in the second leg as well”.
Inside Inter, on the other hand, there is no defeat to comment on, but a draw which, on balance, had a similar flavour. Winning in Udine would have led to the tie in the standings, even overtaking considering the goal difference, instead the Nerazzurri, once again, failed at the decisive moment. But it was above all the disagreement between Conte and the referee Maresca that made the climate heavy, which began on the pitch with the expulsion of the coach and exploded in the tunnel at the end of the game: witnesses tell of a very tough clash, which remained within the limits of decency only thanks to the intervention of those present. The risk of a long disqualification exists, even if the rumors speak of only two days: today the sports judge should announce his decision, but it is clear that the air is not breathing in Appiano.
“The only important thing is qualification – he cut short Tale, preferring to focus on the match – A team test will be needed, the championship derby was a match in which we found ourselves down 2-0, this time we will have to be much more cynical. It's important to be decisive and determined especially when it comes to scoring, then there are more or less fortunate moments, the important thing is that there is always great participation and self-sacrifice".
Making this Milan derby number 227 (the 25th in the Italian Cup) even more uncertain will be training choices, conditioned by commitments (before and after) in the championship, but also by injuries. Pioli is grappling with the certain absences of Calhanoglu and Bennacer, he also has to deal with the infirmities of Mandzukic, Tonali and Kalulu and with the disqualification of Donnarumma, which is why, once again, we will see a 4-2-3- 1 different from the typical one with Tatarusanu in goal, Dalot, Kjaer, Romagnoli and Hernandez in defense, Meité and Kessié in midfield, Saelemaekers, Brahim Diaz and Leao behind the lone striker Ibrahimovic.
A bit of turnover also for Conte, who could make some very titular players like Young (or Hakimi), Vidal and Lautaro Martinez hold their breath, for a 3-5-2 that will see Handanovic between the posts, Skriniar, De Vrij and Bastoni in the back department , Hakimi, Barella, Brozovic, Sensi (ballot with Gagliardini) and Darmian in the midfield, Sanchez and Lukaku in attack. The match referee will be Valeri, protagonist, in 2012, of a derby full of contested episodes; the hope, this time, is that things will go differently.
