Simone Inzaghi, the head coach of Inter Milan, confirmed that his team's deficit against Milan helped improve their performance in the second half during the Coppa Italia semi-final match, noting that the team is facing a severe injury crisis ahead of the crucial stage of the season.

Inzaghi said: "We were close to taking the lead in the first half through chances from De Vrij and Frattesi, but Milan scored immediately after the break. I think that goal helped us, as our level improved significantly in the second half, and we created many chances against a strong team."

He added: "We played the match with only 14 players in the attacking line, as Arnautovic and Dimarco were not ready, and I had to include some young players, asking everyone to put in extra effort."

He continued: "This is just the first leg, and we will be more prepared for the return match on April 23. We hope some injured players return soon."

He went on: "We have a match in 48 hours, so we didn't want to take risks with some players. Our schedule is busy, especially with the two quarter-final matches in the Champions League against Bayern Munich."

Regarding the duo of Thuram and Correa in attack, he said: "They have played together before and performed well, but injuries kept them out of the lineup for a while. I see them as complementary to each other, and they had a strong match despite the difficulty of the encounter."

He concluded his remarks by saying: "I am very proud of my team; the players have a tremendous desire to give everything for this shirt."