The president of Benfica, Rui Costa, asks the players to show this Tuesday against Inter Milan that they have forgotten the defeat against FC Porto for the championship. The former Portuguese international had lunch with the president of the Italian club, Steven Zhang, and at the end he asked, in statements to Benfica TV, for support in the stands during tonight’s Champions League match.
“Knowing that we will face a historic rival and a historic team of great dimensions, I think that what we have done so far also makes us dream that we can go further and for that we are going to work. of a result that weighed us down, in terms of the championship, but today we are in one more competition, with the same spirit with which we have played up to now, and with the full certainty that our stadium will transport us, once again, to our desires , which are to go through this tie and reach the semifinals of the Champions League, that is the appeal that I also make, this team for what it has done this year deserves this trust from our public, fans and partners and I have no doubt that what Starting from the stands will be an important aspect, transmitting confidence to the team. That is what will happen in a tie that will be tough, very tough, but where we aspire to go further this year”, explained Rui Costa.
The leader of the reds hopes that the team will take another step towards the semifinals of the competition.
“It’s a very tough tie, but our goal is to go further than we’ve done in the history of the Champions League. Two consecutive years in the quarterfinals cannot be a coincidence. The ambition is to stay in the competition. we have that hope and that expectation. Our fans also convey that hope, they have that ambition and it is that symbiosis that will help us overcome a very difficult rival”, added the Benfica president.
Benfica and Inter Milan will play starting at 8:00 p.m. in a match that counts for the quarterfinals of the Champions League. There will be English referee Michael Oliver.
The only Portuguese team in the competition, Benfica seeks to guarantee a new presence in the semifinals of the main European club competition and the first in the Champions League era.
The current leader of the Portuguese championship, within the group of regular starters, will not be able to count on the Danish full-back Bah, who was injured precisely against FC Porto, and the Argentinian center-back Otamendi, suspended.
Benfica has never gone beyond the quarterfinals since, in 1992/93, the Champions League replaced the Champions Cup, now having a sixth chance ahead, after 1994/95, 2005/06, 2011/12, 2015/16 and 2021/22 have been removed.
Inter Milan, champion of Italy in 2020/21 and runner-up in 2021/22, is currently fifth in Serie A, in a season in which they have disappointed at the domestic level.
Source: TSF
