The Rossoneri created the better chances throughout the match but failed to find the back of the net and the match ended in a goalless draw.
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AC Milan head coach Stefano Pioli feels his side “deserved a victory” against Inter Milan in the Coppa Italia semi-final first leg clash at San Siro on Tuesday. The Rossoneri created the better chances throughout the match but failed to find the back of the net and the match ended in a goalless draw. Meanwhile Milan have a slight advantage going into the second leg, which isn’t yet officially announced, because the away goal rule does apply with the Rossoneri technically the ‘home’ team here. That means if the second leg ends in a score draw, then Milan will go through to the final.
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?️ Here’s what the Coach and Florenzi had to say following #MilanInter
?️ Le dichiarazioni del Mister e di @Florenzi dopo il Derby#SempreMilan #CoppaItaliaFrecciarossa pic.twitter.com/yBfrralJc9
— AC Milan (@acmilan) March 1, 2022
“Milan played well and deserved something more, but if we look at it over the two legs, it is a good result. I still think we deserved a victory this evening,” Pioli told Mediaset.
“It’s only a partial result, we know the second will be very difficult, but I am satisfied with the performance. We’ve made progress over the last two and a half years, we would like to win something and make this a wonderful season.
“I chose the team that was best for this particular match, based also on tactical characteristics. I was not thinking about Napoli at all. That is another very tough test, but the tougher the obstacle, the more satisfying it is to overcome.”
Milan played a high-pressing game and inter were pushed to the back-foot for most part of the match. Early in the match, Brozovic was forced to concede possession inside his own box, but Samir Handanovic was quick to recover and deny Alexis Saelemaekers who latched on to the loose ball.
The best chance of the match was created by Rafael Leao in the second half, when the Portuguese forward cut inside from the left and tried the curl the ball in at the far bottom corner, but Handanovic made a superb save with his strong left arm and Ivan Perisic cleared away the rebound.
“The team was aggressive against an Inter side with a great deal of quality. I think Bennacer and Kessie had a great game, we didn’t allow Inter any real shots on goal and had chances of our own.
“I considered the options very carefully and wanted an aggressive, energetic team with options off the bench. It’s disappointing we were unable to win the match and it all goes down to the second leg. I really liked the performance and we should gain even more confidence from it, because we are a team who belong at this level.”
“I feel we did lack something this evening in the finish and in the final ball. We had chances, we cannot think of having six or seven against a side like Inter, but we did cause them problems and need to be more precise against Napoli.”
