Luis Núñez-VillavearánSpecial Envoy Milan
Special Envoy Milan
Updated Wednesday, February 21, 2024-00:20
Direct free kick A better Inter demands proof of life from the Metropolitano
Chronicle Inter shows more hunger than Atlético in a duel of strategists
The grass cutter The bitter taste in blue and black
If Las Palmas scored five goals, why wouldn't
Llorente
's experiment at the top work again? The truth is that the Madrid native's performance against
Inter
is what anyone expects from him: intensity, duels and support for the midfield. It's not little, but in the Champions League it's not enough. "We controlled the game, but we didn't create many scoring chances,"
Diego Simeone
conceded in the press conference after the match.
The man from Madrid could not stretch the team up front, because he was more concerned with following the mobile Italian central players. "His job was to control
Bastoni
," specified the Argentine coach. So, like the whiting that bites its tail, the more he helped contain the defenders, the more the team sank and the more difficult it was to get away from
Oblak
's goal .
Once the Canarian plan was blown when the Italians were able to get out of the pressure with danger,
Simeone
delayed
Llorente
in line change by change until he ended up at right wingback, since he is the one who has played the most this season.
His partner above wasn't much better. Maybe it's not tiredness anymore, maybe it's something in his head that makes him not perform with the hunger that he showed when he was chasing
Luis Aragonés
. Once Hortaleza's wisdom has been surpassed, it seems that
Griezmann
's light has gone out. In addition, he left injured with a blow to his foot. "Antoine's thing is an ankle thing, but he has a noble joint, a coach told me,"
Simeone pointed out.
The worst rival
When the draw came out, there was a tidal wave when the Inter Milan ball came out. It wasn't PSG, but one of the worst seconds that could come out of the hype. A team that has also continued to grow throughout the season and has only conceded two defeats this season: against Sassuolo in the league and against Bologna in the Cup. "We already knew that it was a very difficult place to play "Witsel conceded.
The Italians, first with nine points ahead of the second and one game less, have proven intractable in the League, but more vulnerable in the group stage of the Champions League. As if they had a mask like the one
Kanye West
presented
at the Giusseppe Meazza.
Ceciarmy
would be proud.
Kanye West among those attending the game.MARCO BERTORELLOAFP
And Inter had only had three wins and three draws in the group stage, two of them against Real Sociedad. No defeat, yes. "They do it well. They can play on the counterattack, on the foot. We compete very well,"
Simeone
assessed his rival.
Both Simeone and
Oblak
have admitted that the mistakes have been what have condemned the team. "Football always has mistakes, that's where the goals come from," said Cholo. And the goalkeeper trusted in the strength of the group to recover for the second leg.
At the Metropolitano, Atlético was an invincible rival until
Sevilla
ended the streak recently. But in the
Champions League
they have three wins out of three. "I am optimistic, beyond defeat we have the option of being able to compete. We know what we are going to find and we know how they play. Now it is time to compete when it is our turn," explained the Argentine.