Inter coach Roberto Mancini admitted his side had made lifedifficult for themselves, despite beating Porto 3-1 to secure a place in the last eight of the Champions League.
An Adriano hat-trick earned Inter passage through to the quarter finals but it was not plain sailing for the Italian team.
“We did everything we could to make things difficult for ourselves,” said Mancini.
Having scored early we then pulled back and didn’t create much during the first half except on the break.
“We were better after the interval, though we should have been more careful on that corner when Porto scored. When you concede a goal to go 2-1 up with 20 minutes left it’s only natural that you feel a bit of fear.
“It was a good evening though and I am really pleased for the fans who deserved a night like this. I am particularly happy that Adriano is back scoring again – he really deserved to get through his difficult moment,” added Mancini, referring to the lack of recent goals from the Brazilian who had scored just once in 2005.
“The defence did very well and deserve some credit as they hadn’t played much together and apart from the lapse of concentration for their goal gave away very little,” added Mancini.
Inter’s Argentine midfielder Juan Sebastian Veron was delighted to have progressed.
“I’ve waited a long time for a night like this. During the past few seasons I haven’t played as much as I wanted, so to play in a packed San Siro like this is something really special,” he said.
Asked about Adriano’s performance, he said: “It was important for the club and also for us, because the season hasn’t gone exactly how we would have liked.
“In the dressing room we’re all happy. Outside, unfortunately, there are people who like to speculate on who wants to stay and who wants to go. We’re at a very important phase of the season and it’s a big boost to have him scoring again.”
