Inter defender Alessandro Bastoni believes that the Nerazzurri still have plenty more to give after their Champions League quarterfinal first leg win over Benfica.
Speaking to Italian broadcaster SportMediaset after the 2-0 win at the Estadio da Luz, via FCInterNews, the 23-year-old stressed that, in his view the team have sufficient quality that this could only be the start for them.
Inter produced a big statement at the da Luz yesterday evening, showing that even amid their most difficult spell of the season, they can emerged as strong as ever and get a massive result.
It wouldn’t quite be fair to say that the Nerazzurri have one foot in the semifinals of the Champions League as there is still a lot of football to be played at the San Siro next week.
However, Inter certainly have an advantage in their pursuit of the penultimate stage of Europe’s top club competition.
If the Nerazzurri are to get there, they will face a massive challenge in the form of a two-legged tie against either AC Milan or Napoli, and then should they reach the final a virtual mountain to climb against one of the four teams on the other side of the bracket.
It will take all of Inter’s quality to keep going in this competition, as well as regain their top four spot in Serie A, but from Bastoni’s perspective, there is no lack of confidence.
“I said [on Monday] in the press conference, we believe in our quality,” the defender said.
“We knew that to beat Benfica, a team who are dominating in their league, we had to stick together.”
“We all helped each other to win the match,” the 23-year-old added.
As for his assist to Nicolo Barella yesterday, Bastoni said that “I always wonder about it because even though I have the quality to play that ball, it doesn’t always come out because matches like this take so much out of you.”
“We’re still yet to see the real Inter,” he added.
“But we have a united and balanced group, and so we can keep going in the best way.”
