AC Milan head coach Stefano Pioli believes his side perhaps deserved more from the game in their 0-0 Coppa Italia semi-final first leg draw against Inter.
In the end a 0-0 draw might have been rather predictable given that the Rossoneri and Nerazzurri looked like two sides running a bit low on confidence and very low on rhythm. Pioli spoke to Milan TV after the game to reflect on the performance, with his comments relayed by MilanNews and translated below.
“We approached the game well, we were compact and aggressive. We didn’t risk much and created more. We deserved more, qualification remains open,” he said.
On the display for Ukraine: “It was very emotional. Thanks to our fans, they are special.”
On Bennacer: “The decisive moment of the season is coming, so we need everyone. Bennacer is growing, but the work of the whole team is fundamental.”
On Rebic: “When a player is out for a long time he loses pace. He has often tried the game without succeeding, but sooner or later it will come.”
On the build-up play from the back: “We wanted to build with six players because we knew that Inter would come high to press us, thus leaving the 4v4 ahead and with this we created problems. We created chances, I expected certain situations. We created a lot and risked little.”
On the match: “The pace in the first half was very high, so I also made several changes. We could have made some better choices in some transitions, we certainly need to improve on this aspect.”
On to the next one: Napoli is a MUST win!