Lautaro Martinez warns Inter ‘have to be intelligent’ against Atletico Madrid and recognise the pitfalls of a two-legged Champions League Round of 16 tie.
The first leg kicks off tonight at San Siro at 20.00 GMT, with the decider at the Wanda Metropolitano on March 13.
The away goals rule no longer counts in European competition, so if the two teams are tied on aggregate after that second match, then it will go to extra time.
“When there are two games, sometimes that’s more of a difficult moment because it also depends on the result of the first leg, you have to face the same team again after a few weeks, that’s always difficult,” Lautaro Martinez told UEFA.com.
“Obviously, we have to be intelligent, prepare the game well to know how to approach it, depending on the result of the first game, if you play at home or away.”
Inter finished runners-up in their Champions League group behind Real Sociedad, so have the first leg at home and the second will be on Atleti’s home turf in Madrid.
“If you were to have a direct knockout game, it might be easier, because you know that everything is at stake in that game itself.”
Simone Inzaghi has shown himself to be very effective at coaching for these Cup fixtures, taking Inter to the Champions League Final last season.
He also won the Coppa Italia two years in a row and has now won the Supercoppa Italiana for three consecutive campaigns.
Lautaro prima di Inter-Atletico: "Tutto più difficile quando ci sono andata e ritorno, dovremo essere intelligenti" https://t.co/4onLQG35bR
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