MILAN - "Let’s forget about any talk of a cursed San Siro, it has nothing
to do with it. Today’s defeat was an ugly one and the result hurts, but we
can’t lose faith now. This defeat can’t undermine all the work done so far by
this team, one that’s had so many changes." These were the opening
statements from Andrea Stramaccioni after the match.
There’s work to do. The coach knows this and has no problem saying so, with the
knowledge that a reaction is more than possible: "We have clear ideas on
what is not working. We know what we’re suffering from and we’ll work on it. We
had managed to keep a clean sheet in the first half, but in the second half we
were punished by a rapid counterattack, even when we had four players back. But
Siena still found a way through. And then I really have to give my compliments
their goalkeeper."
Stramaccioni was not looking for excuses or a way to hide: "We’re not
going to shy away from this situation. But from this defeat I’m sure we’ll be
able to bring out the things that were lacking. I have great faith in this
team. I'm trying to give support to an offensive formation on the pitch, with three
players up front, but let’s not forget that we have players that push forward,
like our full-backs, and so it happens that we pay for it in the middle. Yet
for all of our home games so far this is the one in which we created the most
scoring chances. I believe that Inter can work on the pitch with the three
offensive players. However, the sensation is – and I repeat – that we suffer
too much in the middle when the opponent counterattacks. Although in today’s
match, up until Vergassola’s goal, Siena had only been dangerous on corner
kicks. If Inter had won by putting away some of those chances we had then I
still would have thought the same thing; that we need to correct this
situation. We need to organise things centrally. In a new team that’s had many changes
we need to find the right balance. Could a three-man defence be a solution? It
could be. We'll see."
The coach was asked about some whistles that the Nerazzurri received at the end of the match: "We got booed from one part of the stadium, not from all of it. The curva urged us on, for example, even at the end. The boos hurt because we’re at the beginning of a new project and we’re doing everything we can."
At the end of the match president Massimo Moratti met with the team in the dressing room: "What did we say to each other? We were really down over the defeat but the president is unquestionably with us."
