After mauling Shakhtar Donetsk 5-0 in the semi-finals of the Europa League, Inter coach, Antonio Conte has said that his team made the Ukrainian champions look average.
Inter romped the Ukrainians with braces coming from Romelu Lukaku and his strike partner, Lautaro Martinez to seal a meeting with Sevilla in the final. This is the biggest semi-final victory since Milan crushed Real Madrid in the 1988-89 European Cup by the same scoreline.
“I think we reached the Final playing against a team that we made look less strong than it was, but Shakhtar have a lot of talent and we stopped them playing with the pressing all over the pitch.
“They have a lot of quality in their passing, also pace, but we did well to force them into defending, which we know full well they aren’t as comfortable with as keeping the ball.
“We played with courage, had the right plan, played a very European game in the right way and the players deserve all the credit. It was a superb performance and we made Shakhtar look average,” Conte told Sky Sport Italia.
Antonio Conte describes reaching Europa League final as satisfying
Speaking further, Conte has said that it is satisfying to see his team as the first Italian club to reach the Europa League/UEFA Cup Final since Parma in 1999.
“It’s satisfying for everyone. The most important thing for me is that many lads are playing this type of game for the first time. They are gaining experience at an important level in a tournament that Italy has not been protagonists in for a long time.
“Sevilla have a great deal of experience, I think they won it four times in the last six or seven years. However, we have enthusiasm, hunger and the desire to amaze people.”
To him, all they need to do now is rest, recuperate and try to give some joy to the Inter fans. He said they will be proud of his lads, because they are giving their heart and soul.
“As I always said, we have to leave the field with no regrets. We must know that we’ve given our all, done everything we possibly could, so if we do lose, it’s because the opponents were better.”
Conte not interested in going back to the past
Conte however stated that he won’t be going back to certain situations. This was stated when he was asked about his furious rant after the final Serie A game of the season. The former Juve coach had accused the club of giving him and his squad ‘zero protection.’
In order to get some assurance, Inter’s President Steven Zhang flew into Germany last night to be with the team.
“I don’t feel like going back over certain situations. I felt some things at the time and felt the need to say it. What I say is always aimed at being constructive. The media likes to emphasise some situations more than others, but at the same time, I know we have to go through certain steps to become what Inter want to be in the future.
“I am not a political person. I stick to facts and action, not being particularly diplomatic, but I try to be constructive and not to offend anyone.”
