Luciano Spalletti held a press conference ahead of tomorrow’s Champions League clash against Premier League outfit Tottenham Hotspur at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza.
Spalletti began by underlining the importance of these types of matches: “These games are worth so much in terms of enthusiasm and conviction. I think that with the period we’re going through this is the game we needed. It’s one of those matches and one of those competitions you wouldn’t swap for anything. I’ve been lucky enough to experience them several times, there are incredible emotions and if you’ve been there you can’t do without it. The Champions League is the amusement park of football, the Disneyland of football. The decorations, the colours. In the previous times I’ve been involved I entered a world that’s particularly beautiful and entertaining, you can hear the music from inside the dressing room.”
The former Roma manager argued that Spurs are the favorites stating that: “You could perhaps say there’s more pressure on them because they have more experience in this competition or they’re stronger, but we’re strong too. We’re not going through a good period but, as I said, this is the kind of game that can turn things around quickly. We were in control of the match until the 70-75th minute. After that our intensity dropped and we conceded a goal, then we became a bit confused and lost our shape. Then we had the fear of not doing it and it ended the way it did.”
Spalletti was then asked how he reacted to the defeat against Parma: “It’s always the same, you play the game and then you watch it again, which I did right after I’d put my daughter to bed. The next day you talk to the team and show them a video, often we have a discussion and bring up the points we want to. All in total calmness. If the players want to participate and say their piece then they can, in this case they didn’t. We’re all aware that we have to do more, and that this is a competition we’ve dreamed of since childhood.”
In conclusion Spalletti was asked about if Inter will play with a three man defence to which he replied: “D’Ambrosio will be evaluated, we will see tomorrow but I think he is in pain. He has a muscle contusion, he worked well yesterday but these are important hours and the risk that wasn’t there is there now. Maybe like this we have the possibilities in the group that has been created. It is clear that this requires the availability of someone to do something different but we have the formation to express all the potential that a team like Inter could want. I could have a full-back that runs less in a 4 man defence or a three man defence with two midfielders on the wing.”
