My Goal Is A Practiced Move

He says that his first goal is a practiced move.

- I scored an identical goal against Empoli in the championship last season. Sometimes I pull it off in training too. This is a big satisfaction, but the most important thing is that we won the trophy. We all invested a lot of effort and sweat. We deserved it. 

Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti called last night’s victory the biggest one in his career. At the Olympic stadium in Athens, Milan picked up the Champions League trophy for the seventh time in the club’s history. 

- This is a very big victory and an amazing achievement. Few people believed in us, but we have succeeded. It has never occurred to me to leave the club. After last night’s celebration, my price on the market has grown, but this has nothing to do with it because people know what kind of special relationship I have with Milan. I played at the club and won trophies with it, this is where I belong. Rumours bothered me, saying that someone would replace me, but we should leave all that behind us and forget the bad games.   

After the scandal in Serie A and the corruption, the national team won the World Cup and now an Italian club has won the Champions League too. Italian football seems to have risen on its feet and the future looks very bright. 

- Italian football suffered a lot. I hope that, with all the trophies, we will restore the credibility we used to have.  

Ancelotti singled out Inzaghi’s first goal as the crucial moment in the game because, until that point, there was only one team playing: the one from Anfield. 

- The goal gave us confidence because we were not playing well. The first half was very hard, Liverpool kept attacking and pressuring us in the middle of the field, so the ball could not reach Kaka and Seedorf. It was easier in the second half. We are a tough team and it was important for us to have the recovered Nesta and Ambrosini in the team. 

Rafael Benitez has trumpeted for several weeks now that new owners George Gillett and Tom Hicks will have to pony up some cash if they want the Reds to continue achieving such results.  

- Our goal is the same for the next season. The Champions League finals, but also chasing the Premiership title. For us to succeed, we will have to redesign the team. Especially when one looks at how long the bench is in other top notch teams. It is difficult to find quality reinforcements. Manchester United spent 29 million euros on Owen Hargreaves, which is a true reflection of the state of the market. 

Rafa mentioned the finals that the team lost. 

- It is hard to play against Milan. They destroy you with a single opportunity and that is exactly what happened, but I am very disappointed. When Kuyt reduced the score, I was convinced that we would score the equalizer, but it caught me by surprise when Fandel blew the final whistle. Maybe we could have done something more.