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Mourinho hails Inter and slams Barca attitude |
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Jose Mourinho hailed Inter Milan for their resilience and claimed they were no longer ''a small Champions League club'' after they beat holders Barcelona 3-1 at the San Siro.
However, the Inter coach also blasted Barcelona and accused them of trying to crowd around the official after the final whistle because of a Dani Alves penalty appeal.
"Obviously beating Barcelona is not easy, neither is scoring or defending against them. We won and deserved it. Clearly it's a result beforehand we would've been happy with," he said to TV station RAI. "However, we are far away from the final. There's another game to go against a side of the top quality who are extraordinary on home turf.
"After the match I saw some things in the players' tunnel that show me what it is I must expect next week.
"I saw the Barcelona players trying to put pressure on the referee. My only comment was that their players have short memories, but 'my' Chelsea players last season were complaining after an historically bad refereeing performance by Ovrebo.
"Why can Barcelona not act like champions and accept they lost on the night to a team that played better? We played very, very well. I am truly sorry we conceded that goal, as we studied Barcelona so carefully and knew what we shouldn't do. The one time we did that, losing the ball in our final third, and were punished for it.''
Mourinho praised his side for their fightback and hailed their ''extraordinary campaign''.
"The team did brilliantly to give their all and fight back. Whatever happens, we could even lose 10-0 in Spain, but Inter have won six consecutive Champions League games and if this squad doesn't win it this year, it will the next or the one after.
"Inter have gone from being a small Champions League club to one that can deservedly beat Barcelona and challenge to go all the way. The Inter players deserve all the praise in the world. Whatever happens, the fans will never forget the journey we have made and the effort everyone put in.
"We are a united squad and share a dream, the idea is to chase that dream, and we will go all the way. Now we can either go to the final in Madrid or home with our heads held high, as it has been an extraordinary campaign for Inter."
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