Stefano Pioli said that AC Milan should have given themselves more than a one-goal lead in their UEFA Champions League quarter-final against SSC Napoli after their opponents finished the first leg with 10 men.
Milan had about 15 minutes to extend their advantage earned from Ismael Bennacer’s first-half strike when Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa was sent off for two quickfire bookings.
“It’s the only regret we have, we should have been more clear-headed,” Pioli told reporters. “It’s a shame, but they gave a lot. It’s a good result after a good performance, let’s hope for the next one.”
Photo: AP
Milan now have to defend a slim lead at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona in Naples, with the prospect of a semi-final clash with local rivals Inter after they handily won against SL Benfica on Tuesday.
“It will be difficult match, Napoli are a good team with a lot of quality, the team which up to now had scored the most goals in the Champions League,” Pioli said. “We had a lot of difficult moments tonight... We’re expecting Napoli to come at us and we need to put everything out there on the pitch” in the second leg.”
“We won’t get our approach wrong ... no one here thinks we’ve already won,” he added.
Photo: AP
Meanwhile, Napoli manager Luciano Spalletti said that he would quit if the fans did not create an intimidating atmosphere for the second leg after tensions between fans and owner Aurelio de Laurentiis have bubbled over in the past few weeks.
Protests from some supporters against De Laurentiis over what they say are his attempts to remove them from the stadium has left home games flatter than one would expect after such a brilliant season for such a passionate fanbase.
Napoli’s four-goal home hammering at the hands of Milan in Serie A earlier this month was played in a bizarre atmosphere, with little chanting and even fights breaking out between home supporters.
“If it happens again for the second leg, I will quit,” Spalletti said. “For what we’re contending, for the sensitivity these players have because ... these players are sensitive to what goes on around them.”
“We played in an atmosphere which did not help us. It’s inexplicable not helping the team in that moment,” he added.
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