Simone Inzaghi said that he gave Inter little time to celebrate their Champions League win over Monaco on Wednesday, with the Milan derby up next this weekend. (More Football News)
Inter eased to a 3-0 win over Monaco, who saw Christian Mawissa sent ꦰ💯off after 12 minutes, earning them a fourth-placed finish in the 36-team league standings.
Their reward forꦗ finishing in the top eight is a potentiaꦓl clash in the last 16 against either Feyenoord, Juventus, PSV or arch rivals Milan for a place in the quarter-finals.
Inzaghi's side have now won five consec🅰utive home Champions League matches for the first time since a run of seven between December 2009 and November 2010.
And since going out of the competition in the group stage in three seasons in a row between 2018-19 and 2020-21, Inter have progr𝐆ess🏅ed to the knockout stages in each of their last four seasons.
"The boys were reall𒅌y good at preparing for the game with this intensity, it allowed us to taꦆke a big step forward," Inzaghi told reporters.
"We played seven games out of eight with💃out conceding a goal. I am really satisfied with our progress.
"It was the first goal of the season (to be🍨 in the top eight), we cared a lot about that, and we succeeded with full merit.&quo𝔍t;
I🌌nter, however, have another huge clash at the San Siro this Sunday, taking on rivals Milan in Serie A as they look to sta🤡y in touch with leaders Napoli.
Sergio Conceicao's side missed out on a place in the top eight following their 2-1 defeat to Dinamo Zagreb, but the rivals could still face each other in the next r🗹ound of the Champions ꧒League.
"We will try to give them (the players) a few days of rest," Inzaghi said, adding he does not usually speak to the𝓡 team ꦗstraight after a game, but made an exception this time.
"I'm proud of what the boys did, and I told t💙hem that. I don't usually talk, but tonight I stopped for two minutes with them."
Wednesday's win was sealed with a hat-trick from Lautaro Martinez, with the Argentine's treble marking a little bit 🌳of Champions League history for the Nerazzurri.
Martinez’s hat-trick took him level wit🤪h Sandro Mazzola (17) as Inter's leading scorers in European Cup history. It was also the club's first 𓂃Champions League hat-trick since Samuel Eto’o netted one against Werder Bremen in September 2010.
Th💛e Argentine's penalty after three minutes and 16 seconds was the earliest spot-kick scored in a Champions League match sinceꦚ March 2020, when Josip Ilicic scored for Atalanta against Valencia after just two minutes and 47 seconds.
Martinez was part of the side that lost in the 2022-23 final to Manchester Ci🐎ty, and said Inter have another great chance of reaching the showpiece match in Munich, but again, had his full attention on their clash with Milan this weekend.🌌
"Inter are a great team, which must b🍌e respected," Martinez said. "We showed it two years ago by reaching the final against City, even last year we deserved more.
"When you enter the match with the right mindset, the games develop in the best way. After the red ca𝕴rd, we controlled the game well.
"Now, however, we have to think about the derby. We can't lose any more points in the league.&quoไt;
