Milan-Inter 0-2
I GOL
0-3 Lautaro Martinez scores in the 77th minute
0-2 Doubled by Dzeko in the 21st minute
0-1 Goal from Dimarco following an assist from Barella in the 10th minute
Tonight the Arabian derby between Rossoneri and Nerazzurri for the Italian Super Cup. The challenge is played at the King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh.
The formations
Milan (4-2-3-1): 1 Tatarusanu; 2 Calabria, 24 Kjaer, 23 Tomori, 19 Theo Hernandez; 8 tonal; 4 Bennacer, 30 Messias, 10 Brahim Diaz, 17 Leao; 9 Giroud. All.: Pioli.
Inter (3-5-2): 24 Onanas; 37 Skriniar, 15 Acerbi, 95 S. Bastoni; 36 Darmian, 23 Barella, 20 Calhanoglu, 22 Mkhitaryan, 32 Dimarco; 9 Dzeko, 10 Lautaro. All.: S. Inzaghi
Referee: Maresca of Naples.
EVE
SUPER CUP DERBY. PIOLI, ‘AC MILAN IS STILL HUNGRY’
There is hunger, a full belly is “commonplace” and the derby that is worth the Super Cup is not a watershed for the season. “You need balance”, explains Stefano Pegs on the eve of defending his Milan called to redeem two disappointing weeks which coincided with the elimination from the Italian Cup and two draws in the league. Pioli does not accept certain criticisms, such as saying that the Rossoneri team is no longer hungry. “Ours, football, is an environment full of clichés. How can such a young team have a full stomach, in which most of the members have won only one trophy? I think everything that revolves around us is always “exaggerated, both positively and negatively. The only thing that counts is the quality of the game. If we lower the quality, it becomes more difficult to win games, that’s all.” And that’s what happened in the latest releases: there was a lack of quality. But with a competition now over (the Italian Cup), a really difficult Scudetto with Napoli with nine points and a perfect roadmap, winning the derby becomes almost imperative. “I don’t know if it’s a watershed match, I know it’s an important goal. We’re sure Milan aren’t the ones in the first half in Lecce. I expect a level match – he underlines -. We have the chance to win another trophy, it would mean giving continuity to the path we started. We know that the last week hasn’t been the best, but it’s a game in itself, like all derbies are”. The first half in Lecce saw a listless and superficial team on the pitch. “It wasn’t the real Milan,” assures Pioli. Under accusation is the defense and the six goals conceded in just four games. “We have to try to defend better – admits the Rossoneri coach – we are conceding too many goals, we have to find defensive compactness again. We made some mistakes when we conceded goals, we have to do better”. In defense, Kjaer could return as owner alongside Tomori in the central couple. A ballot with Kalulu whose doubt will remain until the end. On the wings Theo Hernandez and Calabria who as captain dreams of being able to lift the Cup. “We talked, but we remain as positive as before. We are not dejected or sad – the fullback informs -. We have lacked results, but this must not give us negative thoughts. It is my goal to raise this cup. First, however, we must give everything that we have on the pitch. My dream is to win as many trophies as possible. Obviously this too is part of a journey of ups and downs, playing for a final as captain is a great thing. But playing it is one thing, winning it is another”, he says Calabria. It will also be up to him to stem Lautaro and Dzeko, perhaps Lukaku if he recovers. And Milan must hope that the attack will make an impact again, Giroud’s goals are missing, and play a compact game to forget the hardships and bad impressions, winning the second trophy under Pioli’s management.
INZAGHI WITH THE DOUBT LUKAKU, ‘FOR THE INTER SPECIAL MATCH’
“A very important derby, also because it’s a final.” Objective first trophy of the season for Inter, who in the Italian Super Cup derby against Milan go hunting for the fourth cup in the last three seasons. A cup that the Nerazzurri coach Simone Inzaghi he wants to defend at all costs, after last year’s success against Juventus. Also because winning, for him, would mean reaching Fabio Capello and Marcello Lippi at the top of the most successful in the tournament with four victories. “The derby is already a special match, this time it will be even more so. We know the importance of the match, it’s also a derby in a final and it’s only happened twice: it’s even more important. We’re playing for the first trophy of the season. so we want to play a great game,” Inzaghi explained in the press conference on the eve. There is no lack of motivation, starting with avenging the last derbies lost in the league. “Redemption derby? I consider it a trophy, not all teams manage to get there. We know what it represents, we won it last year so we want to defend it with all our strength”, continued Inzaghi. “The last derbies we’ve lost have left us wanting more. We had a lot of them last year, they’re always special matches, decided by episodes. We lost this year by not deserving it.” Which is why attention and concentration must be at their maximum for Barella and his companions. “We know Milan, they have great qualities and great players – added the Nerazzurri coach -. We find a strong team with forwards of absolute value, we’ll have to work as a team because when we concede or don’t concede, we only talk wrong about the defenders, it’s the whole team must work together. Finals? They are games in themselves, where there will be many moments in the game where the team will have to be good at managing the moments. My wish is that the team is always in the game.” The only doubt that the coach carries with regards to training concerns Romelu Lukaku. However, the Belgian seems to be able to sit on the bench as much as possible, after the Indian knee action that has been tormenting him for about ten days. “Lukaku trained partially in the group yesterday, we will have to evaluate. But if he doesn’t recover, we have hopes for Monday’s match against Empoli. Our hope is that he can work without pain because for us he must be something more than just we could have”. For the rest, we are moving towards the confirmation of the formation seen against Verona, with the only new feature being Barella’s return to midfield from the 1st minute in place of Gagliardini.
