Milan welcome Antonio Conte’s Tottenham Hotspur at the San Siro for the first leg of the Champions League last 16 tie. Stefano Pioli’s men arrive into the clash on the back of a first win in eight matches, and the coach believes the Rossoneri are up to task despite their poor recent form.
Speaking to SportMediaset (via MilanNews) in an exclusive interview prior to the highly anticipated encounter, Pioli rallied his side to rid the demons of their past and find their footing.
“There’s no need for a spark. The Champions League is what we wanted. We played well through the group stages and now we’re playing for the quarter-finals with great determination, with great spirit and with a great desire to do well.”
He had a few words to share about Spurs, who themselves arrive into the game following a 4-1 thrashing at the hands of Leicester City.
“They are a very strong team; they beat Manchester City a week ago. Afterwards they had a setback, as can happen after a great match and before the Champions League. We know that they are led by a very experienced manager who knows us well. So we prepared ourselves to put on the best possible performance which the Champions League demands.”
Pioli highlighted three main aspects his side cannot ignore while playing a UCL knockout game.
The important thing will be to put determination on the field. There are three characteristics that you cannot go below in the Champions League: the pace of play, the quality of the choices and the technical quality, and we will try to be at our best”.
"Conte was one of the few to call me and congratulate me on winning the Scudetto.
5 managers out of 16 in the UCL round of 16 are Italian. I would say we have a good coaching school."
?️ Stefano Pioli via presser ?? pic.twitter.com/2iMQDQbJnR
— Italian Football TV (@IFTVofficial) February 13, 2023
This will be the fifth competitive meeting between Milan and Spurs, with the English outfit unbeaten across each of their previous four. Milan will be wary of the threat Antonio Conte’s tactics possess, with the former Inter and Juventus manager winning eight of his last nine games against Milan between 2013 and 2021.
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