"In the first leg Ajax created problems for us in the first half despite the fact that we knew they were a young and quality team. But Inter had a different approach in the second half and managed to straighten out a very important match. Tomorrow we will have to try and correct the mistakes made in Holland," said Javier Zanetti in Monday's pre-Inter v Ajax news conference.
The Inter captain continued: "We have never underestimated Ajax. We know Dutch football and we knew it was going to be a difficult match. To draw 2-2 at the Amsterdam ArenA after being two goals down is very significant. We want to go as far as we can in the Champions League, but we're not overlooking the championship or the Tim Cup, either. Now we must focus entirely on tomorrow evening's match without thinking about the quarter-final draw which has already taken place. To face Villareal we have to beat Ajax first. To underestimate tomorrow's match would be a mistake."
Looking back to Saturday's Serie A home win against Sampdoria, Zanetti added: "It wasn't an easy match because they're a team who can always create problems because of the class of their players and because they are coached by a good coach. Inter suffered a bit in the first half then dominated after Adriano's goal and deserved to bring home the three points."
How important was Adriano's return to scoring? "We were very pleased about his goal," Zanetti replied. "For him it was fundamental to start scoring again. The last two weeks of training without matches in between have done him a lot of good. Adri is improving, he can be an important weapon for the team. Let's hope he doesn't stop scoring now."
At the Meazza tomorrow Inter will have a crowd for the first time in Europe this season after the four-match ban imposed by UEFA for the throwing of flares in last season's quarter-final Euroderby. "Having a crowd for a match like tomorrow's is very important," Zanetti admitted. "They can help us beat Ajax and get through the round." |