Inter coach Simone Inzaghi feels that reaching the Champions League semifinals is special precisely because it’s something so long-awaited for the Nerazzurri.
Speaking to Italian broadcaster Sky Sport Italia after the team booked their place in the final four of Europe’s top competition with a draw against Benfica, via FCInterNews, the coach reacted to the match and what it means for the team.
Inter now know that they will be playing in the penultimate stage of the Champions League.
The last time that this happened for the Nerazzurri was during the 2009-10 season, when they went on to win the competition.
There is still a long way to go, but the team have already reached further than they had done in well over a decade.
“It’s a great achievement for all of Inter,” Inzaghi said after the match, “we’ve been waiting for it for a long time.”
“I’m happy for the guys who have played through a crazy fixture list, with a lot of injuries and suspensions, and we’re in the semifinals of both the Coppa Italia and the Champions League.”
“We came up against a top side, and we had to do well to knock them out,” the coach said of facing Benfica, “in eight months they’d lost two matches.”
“We approached the match well, and in my view we managed it well in the second half.”
Of what facing AC Milan in a derby in the semifinals means to Inter, Inzaghi said that “It definitely gives us even more motivation.”
“Both we and Milan have done very well.”
“We know that first we have a semifinal in the Coppa Italia, and several matches in the league,” he added.
“When the draws took place at the end of August all this looked very far away, but now we want to finish it off in the best way,” Inzaghi said.
“We always try to work for the good of Inter,” the coach said, “for our fans who were very important to us tonight.”
“We know there will always be criticism, but it’s right to evaluate it in the right way.”