Milan are the first Italian semi-finalists in the Champions League, awaiting tomorrow night’s return match between Inter and Benfica. Pioli’s team drew (1-1) at ‘Maradona’ after leading almost the entire match in which the two teams each missed a penalty. But Luciano Spalletti also disputes another penalty not granted by referee Marciniak to his Napoli in the first half after Leao’s intervention on Lozano. “It’s a very clear penalty that you can’t miss. This isn’t a contact, this is a blow. You risk spraining his ankle if it doesn’t fit well. But then she gives her side and it is said that she sticks to it. But I’m not attacking anything…”. Said the Tuscan technician a Mediaset Infinity on the penalty not granted. “I didn’t dispute it, you disputed it,” he added to Mediaset Infinity, Spalletti referring -. We all agreed except those who have the Milan shirt, even those wearing it next to you on TV. There is a clear penalty on Lozano in the 37th minute, very clear, his ankle just twists. He looks great on replays. He risks twisting his ankle. It’s a penalty you can’t miss. It’s very strict for us“.
Pioli feels the air of the derby
Milan coach Stefano Pioli avoids controversy and “book” a derby with Inter in the semifinals. “I train a group with a big heart. We grit our teeth and suffered: desired and deserved qualification. Congratulations to these guys” the coach said at Mediaset Infinity after qualifying. “It is clear that by it would seem derby. There will be two more beautiful clasheschallenging and very difficult. We have done a lot and we absolutely do not want to stop “, he added. Today, starting from 1-0 in the first leg helped us in one direction and held back in the other – Pioli says -. With Osimhen they had chosen to stay a little lower and we left them the ball of the game. Many had never played a game like this, so there is that we dribbled less in the second half. But everyone sacrificed, we were a team”. “We are happy for our fans who have always supported us – he concludes -, even when things didn’t go well. We are proud of them.”
Spalletti: “Congratulations to Milan on qualifying”
sportingly Spalletti also offers “congratulations to Milan for this qualification, they must be done because he played two games managing to capitalize on the maximum and this is a symptom of a mature team, of players who know how to choose the moments: when to step on the accelerator and when you have to defend yourself with the whole team”. “But I also want to congratulate my own – continues the Napoli coach -. We led a top-level Champions League and played a good game tonight as well. We paid for a little ingenuity, for inexperience in reading the moments of the match. We got there with several players feeling a bit short of breath, starting with Osimhen who had been stopped for twenty days“.