Benfica president Rui Costa stressed on his allegiance to the Rossoneri as the Portuguese giants prepare to play at the very stadium where he attained an iconic status. The ex-Milan trequartista has vivid memories of his encounters against Inter during his time in Italy.
The Portuguese addressed reporters after the UEFA lunch in the afternoon, expecting a great atmosphere at San Siro.
“I obviously expect an atmosphere, we are playing the Champions League at San Siro with a great team. There are no rematches, we lost against the future finalist last season. Then it was the quarter-final, today it’s the group stage. We need to win, because we lost against Salzburg.”
Costa insisted he holds no animosity towards the Nerazzurri despite having a storied history against them.
“Derby? It’s always special against the Italians, I played 12 years in Italy. I have no feelings of rivalry, I respect everyone, but evidently I am Fiorentina and a Milan supporter. “
Rui Costa made 277 appearances for Fiorentina before moving to Milan, where he registered 192 caps, scoring 11 goals and making 46 assists in the process. This will be Benfica’s second consecutive meeting against Inter, following the aggregate quarter-final loss against the previous year’s finalists.
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