Reporter Han Bing reported that 1-0, Inter relied on Lautaro's goal to conquer Anfield, and the aggregate score was 1-2 and could not qualify. Considering the visible squad gap, Inter's win out is decent. To be the first team to beat Liverpool in the Champions League this season, Inzaghi Jr. also gave the club a good birthday gift to the 114th anniversary; at the same time, the elimination of the Champions League did not affect the boss's trust in it - the Milano Sport newspaper said that Xiaoyin is expected to raise his salary to renew his contract until 2024, with a 1-year priority renewal clause.
Before the match, many Italian media advised Inter to politely abstain, rest their main forces to prepare for the league, and strive for a more likely chance to defend their title, but Inzaghi Jr. hopes that this campaign will allow fans to find the state when facing strong opponents.
Sadly, Barrera's suspension left Inter with a key lead before the start of the second leg, and Sanchez's red card left Inzaghi Jr. exhausted in the final half hour – Lautaro's joy of breaking the 490-day Champions League goal drought quickly turned into frustration. Alexis Sanchez's off-the-road kick seemed to ruin the team's vague hopes of a comeback, but in fact, Liverpool were better at both the control of the scene and the creation of threats, but the ill-fated home team was rejected three times by Anfield's goalpost and goal frame.
The Nerazzurri have done their best, Liverpool have the leeway and Klopp has not even made a full substitution. Of course, to be the first team to beat the Reds at Anfield this season, Xiaoyin and his disciples can still leave with their heads held high.
XiaoYin admitted that drawing Liverpool was a helpless result, "Of course, I have a big regret, we overcame a lot of difficulties to qualify from the group stage, but in the quarter-finals we drew Liverpool, they are the best teams in Europe at present with Manchester City and Bayern. However, the Inter coach still affirmed the performance of the players, "In the two-legged game, we were equal to the gestures. ”
Now Inter can put their energy back into Serie A. The last five rounds of Serie A have been hampered by the Champions League and the Coppa Italia, and the Nerazzurri have only scored 5 points, 6 points less than AC Milan, resulting in a 2-point counter-attack by their city rivals. Although Inter still have 1 game in hand, after all, there is Still Napoli behind them, as well as Juventus. The Italian national derby in Turin in early April will largely determine where the Serie A champions will be this season. Not to mention, at the end of April, there is also the second leg of the Milan derby of the Coppa Italia, as well as the strong opponent Roma.
Being able to win such a high-level confrontation before that will also greatly boost the morale of Inter's soldiers, as Xiaoyin said, "Inter will become stronger in the confrontation with a top team like Liverpool".
The lack of opportunity to go further certainly makes Little Inzaghi regret, but Inter Chairman Zhang Kangyang, who visited Anfield, also brought him good news. Inter's board of directors is very recognized by coach Inzaghi Jr., in addition to leading the team to win the Italian Super Cup and reaching the Round of 16 of the Champions League after three years, Inter is still the favorite to win the Serie A this season.
The Milan Sports Newspaper reported before the match that Zhang Kangyang had prepared a two-year contract extension for Inzaghi Jr., extending from the current summer of 2023 to the summer of 2024, with a one-year priority renewal clause. Inzaghi Jr.'s annual after-tax salary has also risen from 4.5 million euros to 5 million euros, with a considerable bonus. Inter believe Inzaghi Jr. can win more trophies for Inter.
Failing to qualify for the round of eight has resulted in Inter's earnings in the Champions League this season falling short of the expected €75 million, but it is already quite impressive. Zhang Kangyang attaches great importance to this Champions League match, knowing that the last time he went with the team to the European away game was in the summer of 2020, Inter and Sevilla in the Europa League final in Cologne.
After two years of struggle, Inter has gradually recovered. Last season's victory gave the team a respite, and after the sale of Players such as Lukaku, Ashraf and Politano to fill the deficit, the market returned as much as 200 million euros. This season the team has only spent 38 million euros on reinforcements, Dzeko and Char Khan Oulu are free agents, and J. Correa has only spent 3.5 million euros on loan. But this summer, Marotta made it clear that Inter could invest more in the city, and at the beginning of the year Inter even rumored that they were interested in bringing in the goalscorer Dybala of Juve, and although the Argentine is currently inclined to renew his contract with Juve, Inter has not given up on his efforts.
Because of the nerazzurri's improved performance and huge returns on the market, inter's likelihood of seeking a sale in recent years has also gradually declined. Zhang Kangyang just rejected an offer of 900 million euros because it was below his psychological reserve price (1 billion euros). Previously, Inter's negotiations with BC Parters lasted for a long time, followed by the intervention of the Saudi Sovereign Fund (PIF), and a scandal with NBA Memphis Grizzlies owner Strauss, but in the end there was no follow-up. At the same time, Spain's Cobbé radio revealed that Inter, who decided to abandon the European Premier League, will be the only club among the 12 founding clubs in the European Super League to officially leave. Inter want to remain operating in the traditional mode, rather than blatantly confronting UEFA, the Italian professional league and the players' union, as rivals Juventus did.
With Inter's performance picking up and Italy's economy picking up, Zhang Kangyang is under far less pressure than he was two years ago. Today, he has changed his original intentions, hoping that Inter can have more trophies to enhance the value of the brand and eventually reach his psychological valuation.