http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Barcelona-c38604 clash, confirms Allegri: UCL news
A.C Milan manager, Massimiliano Allegri, has confirmed the absence of prolific striker, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, from the first-leg of the UEFA Champions League group stage clash against European Champions, Barcelona.
There were question marks over the availability of the Swede after he had picked up a muscle injury in the training ahead of the game. Allegri confirmed that though the striker was eagerly looking forward to the game but he cannot
risk him with this injury.
Allegri said, "Unfortunately Ibra sustained this injury and in the end, he won't be there tomorrow to play. And when you have matches like this, between the two most important clubs, then everybody wants to play. Ibra was eager
and willing to play this match."
The former Cagliari boss admitted that the loss of Ibrahimovic will be a huge blow for his team’s chances because he is the best Milan player right now. However, the tactician still believes that his team has enough quality to
overcome the loss and has urged his players to come out with a winning mentality.
"Ibra really wanted to play in this match, and he wasn't scared at all. In fact, he was very calm. We've lost a fundamental player in Ibra. It would sort of be like if Barcelona were missing Messi for this match. Even if I had
included Pippo in the CL-list, it wouldn't have changed anything because currently he's not ready to play."
Ibrahimovic’s absence means http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Kevin-Prince-Boateng-c20792 is ready to play after initial concerns over his fitness.
The 44-year-old knows the importance of an away goal and believes that his team should go for the kill from the start. Allegri believes that defensive strategy is not the answer to stop Barcelona as they will hurt the opposition
sooner rather than later.
The first-leg of the tie will be played at the Camp Nou on Tuesday, September, 13th, 2011.
Tags: