Inter head coach Simone Inzaghi feels that his team ultimately went out against Liverpool in the Champions League because they switched off during the closing stages of the first leg.
Speaking to Italian broadcaster Sky Sport Italia after their 1-0 second leg win at Anfield, the coach expressed satisfaction with the overall performance but noted that they conceded too cheaply in the first leg and that this put the tie beyond them.
The Nerazzurri put in an encouraging display against Liverpool at the San Siro, particularly at the start of the second half.
However, they were not clinical with the chances that they were able to fashion, whilst the Reds managed to score twice from set pieces to give them a mountain to climb in the second leg.
Inter did managed to win at Anfield, keeping a clean sheet and going ahead through an excellent long-range effort by Lautaro Martinez, but it was not enough on aggregate.
“I think we feel a lot of regret,” Inzaghi said, “we wanted to get to the quarter-final with all our strength, we faced the best team in Europe together with Bayern and City, we played as equals, but we paid the last fifteen minutes of the first leg.”
“During the first 75 minutes at the San Siro we deserved more,” he went on, “then we conceded from a set piece and the goal made us wobble a bit.”
“We came to Anfield to do better,” he continued, “we leave feeling stronger after this two-legged tie even though there is also regret.”
“Right at out best moment, Sanchez was sent off,” the coach said. “But I don’t regret not taking him off, I needed him on the pitch and I would never have taken him off on a night like this.”
“There were some physical problems,” he added, “we had a man disadvantage, Calhanoglu had always played, I preferred to keep Dzeko fresh for Torino, who had just played three consecutive games.”
“I didn’t settle for the 1-0 right until the end,” he added, “even with ten men you can win, but the feeling regret over Sanchez’s red card remains.”
He added that “Liverpool had suffered after Lautaro’s goal, and who knows how it would have ended eleven vs. eleven.”
