Benfica midfielder Joao Mario feels that it’s to be expected that he received some booing from the San Siro during yesterday evening’s Champions League clash with Inter.

Speaking to Portuguese broadcaster Eleven Sports, via FCInterNews, the 29-year-old recalled that even when he had played for the Nerazzurri he had sometimes gotten the ire of the San Siro crowd, and that it is just a part of football.

Mario was a player for whom the quarterfinal tie between Benfica and Inter perhaps meant more than many of his teammates.

The Portuguese international had spent a period playing for the Nerazzurri, having joined them from Sporting CP during the summer of 2016, when expectations were high after he played an important role in his national side winning the Euros.

Things never quite worked out for Mario at the San Siro, as he struggled to show his best before going out on loan to the likes of Spartak Moscow and West Ham United.

Eventually, it was a return to Portugal that really saw Mario showing his best again, as he went on loan back to Sporting and helped the Lisbon-based side win their first league title in almost two decades.

However, immediately after that, the midfielder made the shock move to Sporting’s bitter rivals Benfica, where he has if anything only improved in form, to the point where he has been a key player for them under Roger Schmidt this season as they’ve been imperious in the league and in the Champions League as well.

The former Inter man was on the end of some boos at the San Siro last night, which he described as “Normal.”

“When I played for them, I got some boos, it’s all perfectly normal.”

Of Benfica’s performance, the midfielder said that “I think the team did well.”

“We managed to dominate the match in certain moments.”

“It’s always tricky when you have to suffer, but we fought back well and equalized.”

“These teams only need half a chance to score, this has often happened to Benfica,” he added.

“We scored three away goals for the second consecutive year, maybe we need to improve our home matches,” he used, referring to Benfica’s similarly wild 3-3 draw away to Liverpool last season.

“Congratulations to Inter, they played a good match at the da Luz.”