Edin Dzeko says that Inter’s Champions League semi-final tie with AC Milan is far from over despite a dominant 2-0 first-leg victory for the Nerazzurri.
After Real Madrid and Dzeko’s former side Manchester City traded stunning strikes in their respective 1-1 semi-final first-leg draw yesterday evening, the Italian giants had a lot to live up to and Inter could not have started better, as goals from Dzeko and Henrik Mkhitaryan put them 2-0 up after 11 minutes.
It could have been game over in the first half when Inter were given a penalty by referee Jesús Gil Manzano, after Simon Kjaer was adjudged to have pulled Lautaro Martinez down in the area, but upon consulting the VAR monitor, the Spanish official overturned his original decision.
AC pushed for goals in the second half, but Simone Inzaghi’s team held firm to take a two-goal cushion into the second leg, and post-match to BT Sport, Dzeko admitted that the derby win felt very nice.
“It feels very good, especially because it’s a derby. We played away on paper. It’s a great result for us.
“Sometimes you get in this difficult moment where the ball doesn’t want to go in. Patience and work always pays off. I was calm knowing the goals would come as always. Today is the proof.”
Asked if he and his teammates would revel in their victory before the second leg, Dzeko said that his side’s experience won’t allow them to get caught up in the moment.
“I don’t think that we’ll get carried away because we’re an experienced team. We know what we’ve done today. We have got a great result but nothing is yet finished because in the Champions League only great teams arrive in the semi-finals so we have to be careful and concentrate like today.”
The second leg between the pair takes place on Tuesday evening, where Dzeko will hope to guide his team to their first Champions League Final since 2010.