We can turn it around – Conte warns AC Milan
Former Inter boss Antonio Conte returned to San Siro with Tottenham and could not defeat Milan, but he feels confident for the second leg
After losing 1-0 at Milan in the Champions League, Antonio Conte insisted Tottenham could overcome their deficit going into the first leg.
At San Siro, Brahim Diaz scored in the seventh minute with a close-range nod after Fraser Forster stopped both the Spanish player and Theo Hernandez.
Tottenham has reason to be optimistic going into the second leg in London on March 8 after Milan missed opportunities to extend their lead.
Former Inter manager Conte hopes the atmosphere at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium will be similar to that at San Siro because he thinks it will help Spurs advance to the quarterfinals.
He told BT Sport: “You have to play two games. It was a fantastic atmosphere. I know San Siro, and I know the difficulty to play in this atmosphere.
“For sure in the second game we have to play in our stadium and for sure all the fans will create the right atmosphere to push us to overcome the Milan obstacle.”
His injury-hit team were crushed 4-1 at Leicester City in the Premier League on Saturday, and Conte was without Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg due to suspension for Tuesday’s last-16 first leg in Italy.
As a result of Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg’s suspension for Tuesday’s first leg of the last-16 match in Italy, Conte’s injury-riddled team was destroyed 4-1 at Leicester City in the Premier League on Saturday.
Conte was somewhat pleased with what he saw in the central midfield pairing of Pape Sarr and Oliver Skipp, with Yves Bissouma and Rodrigo Bentancur out due to long-term injuries.
“I think it was better today – high intensity, and I think we played against a good team. Don’t forget Milan last season won the league in Italy,” Conte said.
“I think that to concede the first goal, we can do much better. We conceded a goal after maybe only five minutes.
“Then we tried to lead the game, we tried to create situations to score, but I think Milan defended very well. We had chances to score, but at the end we are talking about a defeat, a loss.”
He said of Sarr and Skipp: “I’m really satisfied for both players. They played a really good game and showed the trust that we have in them, they repaid this.
“Don’t forget we now have three midfielders and we have to continue maybe to the end of the season with these three midfielders, and to have this type of performance from Skippy and Pape Sarr makes me more relaxed because I know I can count on them 100 per cent.
“And then we have Pierre Hojbjerg who for us is a key player.”
