|
|
AC Milan Manager Leonardo: We Paid The Price For A Sloppy Start Against Manchester United
Milan went down 4-0 at Old Trafford, 7-2 on aggregate...
11-Mar-2010 4:45:00 AM
By Alan McGuinness
AC Milan manager Leonardo believes his side paid the price for a poor start in their 4-0 Champions League defeat to Manchester United.
The away side conceded early on and never looked like threatening a rampant United, who triumphed 7-2 on aggregate.
“I think there are many things to analyse and it's not the right time," Leonardo said.
"Apart from the fact the first half could've been a different result, but it was a clear victory for Manchester tonight and that is obvious," he said, according to football-italia.net.
“We knew it took an incredible performance to overturn the first leg, but Manchester United got off to a very strong start and scored an early goal.
“This match was strongly affected by the psychological approach of the two teams. I don't think it can affect us in Serie A, as the team is very mature and we will discuss it between ourselves.
“This side has done some great things this season, including in the Champions League, and we are doing very well in Serie A with a four-point gap from the lead. I think we should consider this match for what it is and that goes for the first leg too.
“In all honesty, straight after the home game I had a strong belief, as the way we played was very good, aside from the result.
“Here the game started in a strange way and we were faced with a team on a great night with real talent who expressed themselves. The 4-0 has to be tied to the fact we needed three goals and so the belief drained out of us."
The Brazilian was also under no illusions that an exit at this stage of the competition is a major disappointment for Milan, who last won the tournament in 2007.
He said: “We cannot deny that the Champions League was one of our targets. This is a heavy defeat against one of the main contenders for the title and are in great shape right now.”
After the final whistle he shared a glass of wine with United manager Sir Alex Ferguson.
“Obviously for the man who lost the wine will taste a little more bitter," said Leonardo. "Unfortunately it's football and one wins, one loses, but friendship, fair play and recognising the qualities of the other team is important.”
The away side conceded early on and never looked like threatening a rampant United, who triumphed 7-2 on aggregate.
“I think there are many things to analyse and it's not the right time," Leonardo said.
"Apart from the fact the first half could've been a different result, but it was a clear victory for Manchester tonight and that is obvious," he said, according to football-italia.net.
“We knew it took an incredible performance to overturn the first leg, but Manchester United got off to a very strong start and scored an early goal.
“This match was strongly affected by the psychological approach of the two teams. I don't think it can affect us in Serie A, as the team is very mature and we will discuss it between ourselves.
“This side has done some great things this season, including in the Champions League, and we are doing very well in Serie A with a four-point gap from the lead. I think we should consider this match for what it is and that goes for the first leg too.
“In all honesty, straight after the home game I had a strong belief, as the way we played was very good, aside from the result.
“Here the game started in a strange way and we were faced with a team on a great night with real talent who expressed themselves. The 4-0 has to be tied to the fact we needed three goals and so the belief drained out of us."
The Brazilian was also under no illusions that an exit at this stage of the competition is a major disappointment for Milan, who last won the tournament in 2007.
He said: “We cannot deny that the Champions League was one of our targets. This is a heavy defeat against one of the main contenders for the title and are in great shape right now.”
After the final whistle he shared a glass of wine with United manager Sir Alex Ferguson.
“Obviously for the man who lost the wine will taste a little more bitter," said Leonardo. "Unfortunately it's football and one wins, one loses, but friendship, fair play and recognising the qualities of the other team is important.”
Inside Goal.Com
-
Vote for your Goal.com World Player of the Week
Have your say on who you think should win Goal.com's weekly honour
-
Euro 2012 a timely respite for depressed Spain
With 24 per cent unemployment, wage cuts and little hope for improvement in the short term, the continental competition will at least take people's minds off their sad situation
-
Welbeck impresses but it's a bad day for Johnson
Ashley Young has also all but secured his place in the starting line up against France while Steven Gerrard put a good shift in. Here's how the Belgium friendly affected the England player's chances of featuring in Euro 2012
-
Five players Rodgers could sign for Liverpool
The new Reds boss was unveiled to the press on Friday and must immediately begin work on revitalising a thin squad with some additions in the transfer market
-
Lambert the latest in EPL manager merry-go-round
The Scot officially left Norwich City on Saturday to become the second new boss in June, following the appointment of Brendan Rodgers at Liverpool on Friday