“We are not ready for the two fronts, with investments we can stay in the first four”- Corriere.it

«Tonight I will be the happiest or most disappointed manager in the world» he had already put his hands forward Stefano Pioli before the game. He who aspired to follow in the footsteps of the great coaches of the Devil who, in the past, had arrived in the Champions Cup final and lifted the cup. What a dream to imitate Rocco, Sacchi, Capello, Ancelotti. He who, when Carletto won the Euroderby in 2003, was still coaching the Primavera side of Chievo. Never mind if, as a boy, Stefano’s support was for Inter. You want to put what satisfaction to continue the cycle that began with the conquest of the Scudetto reaching the final in Istanbul… Game over. Yet the illusion of a comeback remained there, close at hand, until a quarter of an hour from the end when Lautaro broke the inertia of the match and San Siro became a pit.

When you have to recover two goals and the atmosphere of certain nights makes the players shiver, Leao’s uncertain conditions were already the harbinger of a bad evening. It ended with the coach with his head bowed and his hands in his pockets, and the Inter curve ironically singing the chorus “Pioli is on fire”.

«Talking about the lack of desire of the players is not correctPioli clarified. «We missed out in the first 15′ of the first leg, yesterday we created three goal chances in the first half. We have reached this point with merit». But the discouragement is a lot. «It is inevitable that he will be disappointed, it would have been exceptional to reach the final. We have tried to be competitive on two fronts. The regrets are for the championship». Maldini added: «Inter deserved for the two matches, we are not ready to fight on both sides. With the right investments we could still fight to stay in the top four. In the first race we entered with fear. But if we manage to do well in the last few games and stay in the Champions League, it would remain a great season».

Certainly in the Milan of the future there is still space and esteem for him, better if with fourth place in his pocket. In fact, if the owners cultivate doubts about the work of the managers of the technical area following the deficit market last summer, despite the 50 million spent and moreover in total autonomy, the situation is different for the coach. In fact, the RedBird fund recognizes Pioli’s impossibility during the season to make adequate changes, not having an adequate bench for the double commitment. «On behalf of Milan I want to congratulate the entire Inter team and its fans for two well-played matches. We wish them all the best for the final in Istanbul» is the postcard sent by Gerry Cardinale to his city rivals.