Il Derby without return. Inter-Milan of tonight is worth the Champions League final, therefore a dream that would become a sensational reality, or a failure to deal with for some time. The 2-0 in the first leg obviously tipped the purse towards the Nerazzurri, especially as the Devil was going through a moment of disastrous form, also certified by the defeat in La Spezia. In short, the numbers make it difficult even to imagine a comeback, but the derby is always the derby and it is forbidden to take anything for granted.
Inter – Milan (21pm, Canale 5, Sky and Now TV)
The rhetoric of the "remuntada", always topical in scenarios like this, has remained fairly dormant due to the results of the weekend, which give even more polish to a literally unleashed Inter, on the strength of the seven consecutive victories obtained between the championship and the cups. Milan, on the other hand, have won two in their last eight, scoring more than one goal only against Lecce and Lazio: not the best, considering that tonight, to overturn the Nerazzurri and go to Istanbul, a wild attack and an iron defense will be needed . The moment is also opposite from the point of view of morale, because if Inzaghi, also strong in third place in the championship, already smells the scent of reconfirmation, the same cannot be said of Pioli, finished in the crosshairs of critics (together with Maldini) for a season that is ending very badly. The Rossoneri coach needs a feat, because that would be it: accomplishing it would drag him definitively into the history of the club, otherwise it would be Inzaghi who enters the Nerazzurri history books. Of course, the domination of the first leg is still very fresh and the single week of "detachment", seasoned by the results of the championship, is not enough to subvert the predictions, but this time Pioli will be able to play his card Lion, on which practically all the Rossoneri's hopes are based. The Portuguese, fresh from the agreement on the renewal (even if it's not official), wants to show Europe his strength, but his conditions are a big question mark: in fact, it's difficult to be 100% at just 10 days sinceaccident muscular, moreover against an iron defense like that of Inter.
Inzaghi warns his team: "It all depends on us, we're ahead but woe to thinking only about managing..."
“The team is mature and serious, we know we have a deserved advantage but also that we haven't done anything yet – the thought of Inzaghi -. We can't speculate on the result of the first leg, it wouldn't be possible to do it for ninety minutes plus added time, the little arm mustn't come because we have important players who have played great games in their careers. We coaches always make daily choices and sometimes you're luckier and sometimes you aren't, this profession requires it, I may have something in mind for this game, but then you never know how things will develop. There will be moments to manage, yes, because sometimes we'll attack and at other times maybe we'll be shorter, we know it's one of the most important matches in Inter's history and what it means for all of us, we'll have to have a cold head and a warm heart. The referee? In the first leg there was an episode that had to be evaluated in another way (a possible penalty for a foul by Krunic on Bastoni, ed), it would have given an extra blow to the result and to qualification. There's no problem, even if this time the manager will be French and Milan have four in the squad…”.
Acerbi bluntly: "Everything is still open, if we don't pass it will be a season of m..."
"If we even think that we have one per cent more to pass the round we would be making a huge mistake, but we are not like that - he underlined Acerbi -. We're not at all sure, even after the first leg we cheered but not too much. Everything is still at stake, you need to have the right approach and not lose your balance: if you don't pass, it's a season of m… , one game is enough to turn the year into a semi-failure”.
Pioli is charged: “We believe in the comeback, we are Milan. Leao? He's better"
“We believe in a comeback because we are Milan, we have already shown that we know how to play great matches, we can field a high level of play because we have players who can always find the winning play – the words of Pioli -. It wasn't us in the first half of the first leg, we have to start from the second half even if it won't be enough. We need to raise the level, the match will be long, we want to start it better and we have to make as few mistakes as possible to take advantage of their mistakes. If we win we can reach a Champions League final that no one would have ever predicted, as well as the semi-final. Inter are a strong team with characteristics that have put us in difficulty, but those who play football know that the matches are never over until the Finally, companies exist and we believe in them. Leao? He seems to be doing better, if he does all the finishing touches he'll play from the start (which he later did, ed). Inzaghi's words on the referee? I don't like to put my hands forward, they are only his considerations...".
Tonali encourages his teammates: "We have the opportunity to change the season"
“We have the opportunity to change the result of the first leg. There is a lot of emotion to think of being able to reach a Champions League final with the Rossoneri shirt, but we must have the strength to put it aside, there is only one game to go and we have to give our all. At the beginning of the year we had unwritten goals in mind, many didn't go as they should but this time we'll take the field to change the season. The match will have an important weight and could make the difference after we haven't repeated ourselves in the league."
Inter – Milan, the formations: Inzaghi confirms the team from the first leg, Pioli finds Leao again
Full squad for Simone Inzaghi, who however, despite the brace against Sassuolo, will leave again on the bench Lukaku, as well as Brozovic. His 3-5-2 will be identical to that of the first leg, with Onana in goal, Darmian, Acerbi and Bastoni in defense, Dumfries, Barella, Calhanoglu, Mkhitaryan and Dimarco in midfield, Lautaro and Dzeko in attack. Several changes instead for Stefano Pioli, starting with Lion, available again after the absence of a week ago. The Portuguese played the entire training session (just like Messias and Krunic), so he will start from the first minute in the Rossoneri 4-2-3-1, which will see Maignan between the posts, Calabria, Thiaw, Tomori and Hernandez in the back, Tonali and Krunic in the midfield, Saelemaekers, Diaz and, indeed, Leao behind the lone striker Giroud. The referee of the match will be the French Turpin who, despite what Inzaghi insinuated, has a bad balance for both teams: three defeats and only one victory for Inter, two draws and a knockout for Milan.
