AC Milan head coach Stefano Pioli predicts that tomorrow’s Coppa Italia Milan derby against Inter will be a very evenly-contested match.
Speaking in a press conference ahead of the semi-final second leg, as reported by FCInter1908, Pioli predicted a tough match for his team and also expressed the view that the result will not have bearings on the Serie A title race.
The Nerazzurri and the Rossoneri go into tomorrow’s match knowing that progression to the final of the Coppa Italia final is placed on a knife edge, with the first leg of the tie having finished 0-0.
Apart from the nominal advantage of the away goals rule for Milan, there is little to split the teams, whilst the three previous encounters between the city rivals this season have suggested that anything can happen.
Both sides are playing for an important objective in their seasons and also for a lift in momentum in the run-in, though Pioli doesn’t feel that it will be decisive for the Scudetto race.
“In my opinion the derby will not affect the Scudetto race,” he said, “we know the path we have to take regardless of the result tomorrow.”
He went on that “It will be an important match to play for a place in the final, we’ll do our best. But in the league it’s a different path and we have to believe that we can win regardless of tomorrow’s result.”
On the previous matches against Inter for his team this season, Pioli said that “The results against Inter have been very positive but they’ve been very difficult and very balanced matches.”
“We know them well and they know us well,” he added, “tomorrow the details will make the difference, we’ll have to play with concentration and clarity.”
“We will have to be good at reading the game,” the coach went on, “there will be times when we have to speed up and times when we have to slow down.”
“Inter are a very dangerous opponent in an open pitch,” he added, “we’ll try to manage the ball well to become dangerous.”
He noted that “We played very well in the first leg, perhaps the best that we have against Inter. However, tomorrow will be another match that we must face with clarity.”
