MILAN - Andrea Stramaccioni had this to say about his Primavera team's victory over their peers from Sporting Lisbon, in the quarter-final tie of the NextGen Series, the youth-team version of the Champions League: "This competition cannot be compared to any national competition if we consider the experience the players can pick up. Competitions at this level allow us to compare our youth sector – and thus the quality of our work – with those of the best teams in Europe. The experience and maturity my boys have built up learning how to approach these matches in atmospheres like these – [yesterday at the Estadio Magalhães Pessoa there were over 10,000 supporters in the stands, Ed.] – helps us grow in strength and especially psychologically for matches that count. According to the pundits, Sporting Lisbon were favourites to make the final in our half of the draw and without doubt the 10,000 fans who turned out to support them were convinced of this, too."
Getting back to the game itself, Stramaccioni explained his approach to the match: "We decided to risk it and attack Sporting all the way up to their penalty box. We wanted to prevent them from exploiting their quality playing the ball and the various skills of individual players. We gave nothing away in the first half and showed we could be dangerous on various occasions with Longo." In the second half Inter showed their best side: determination and courage, defending themselves from the fury of the Portuguese, who, let's not forget it, hadn't lost a match since the beginning of this season. "All things considered," concluded the Nerazzurri coach, "Inter have worked a minor miracle and we are pleased to reward ourselves, Mr Paolillo and our fans by winning through to the Final Four. But let's not dwell on this too long. On Saturday we have another 'final': Brescia in the league. Inter must not stop now and more importantly must not be happy with their lot. We need our hunger for winning matches and we must keep on improving match after match."
