Federico Dimarco believes that Inter Milan must “start like it’s 0-0” against Atletico Madrid tomorrow evening.
The 26-year-old stressed that the Nerazzurri’s advantage is as slender as it could possibly be while speaking to Italian broadcaster Sky Sport Italia ahead of the Champions League round of sixteen second leg, via FCInterNews.
Tomorrow evening, Inter will attempt to finish the job that they started in the first leg of their tie against Atletico.
But the scoreline could put the Nerazzurri in an awkward position.
Of course, it is not as though Inter would prefer that the score be level on aggregate, or to be behind to Atletico.
But a 1-0 advantage is a very slender one to protect. And it will mean that Atletico will be playing a very aggressive game in front of their fans at the Metropolitano.
It could also mean the risk of Inter taking their foot off the gas a little.
After all, Inter do know that they have the advantage, at least from the opening whistle.
Therefore, the Nerazzurri might have an incentive to not overcommit, and to stick to what they have.
But according to Dimarco, Inter would have no intention of taking a cautious approach just because of the scoreline from the first leg.
Federico Dimarco: Inter Treating It Like 0-0 Vs Atletico Madrid
Dimarco made clear that “We need to have the mentality we’ve had in all our matches this year.”
“We have to take to the pitch in a compact manner, and try to bring home a positive result.”
“The advantage we have is the smallest it possibly be,” the 26-year-old continued.
“We can’t make the mistake of thinking that 1-0 is up.”
Dimarco made clear that “We have to go out onto the pitch like it’s still 0-0 and play our usual game.”
Of playing away at the Metropolitano, Dimarco said that “We know the kind of crowd that’s here.”
“There will be an atmosphere here, just as there was at the San Siro,” he added.
