Inzaghi: "We're close to our objective and will continue to work"

“We knew that Cagliari were in good shape. They didn’t give up and we struggled with their counter-attacks a bit, both in the first half and after the restart. It’s disappointing because we took the lead twice and wanted to win in front of our fans. We’re close to a big objective but still need to pick up points to make it a mathematical certainty. We gave them a few opportunities and should have worked better as a unit and closed the spaces for their first goal. We were a bit unlucky with the second one, but then we conceded a dangerous counter from our own corner at the end. Usually, we handle opposition counter-attacks better, but Cagliari are doing well and the movement of their strikers was good. We know the path we’re on and how we arrived here. We’re close to our objective, but 18 points are still up for grabs. We need to remain focused, but I don’t have any doubts in this regard: the lads have worked really well this week. It’d be pleasing to win it against AC Milan, and we’ll prepare for a huge derby with the aim of producing the best performance possible. The best thing would be to reach the finish line next Monday, but, if that doesn’t happen, we’ll have the matches after that. AC Milan will want to do their best in front of their own fans. We’ll get ready for the match like we always do, analysing today’s game so we are fully prepared for Monday. We’ll try to make sure that everyone is available so we can make the best choices. We know what the derby represents and what it has represented for us in the past few years. We’ll respect AC Milan, just like we have always done every time we’ve met them. Both the Rome and Milano derbies are very intense. Last season, we faced AC Milan in the Champions League semi-finals, and, when I was at Lazio, I was involved in a derby showdown in the Coppa Italia semi-finals. I played a lot of derbies and won on plenty of occasions, although I also lost a few. However, the most important thing will be to prepare for the game as best we can.”