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MILAN – Fredy Guarin gave his take on the night’s match following the final whistle. “The game was important for us get our heads straight; for the group to pick itself up. It might not have been the greatest spectacle but at the end of the day, we won. We showed bags of character and desire,” said the midfielder.

Guarin went on to talk about the Europa League itself, a competition he won during his spell at Porto: “I’ve been lucky enough to go all the way in the Europe League, so I know it well. We need to take it one game at a time; this match is gone now and we just need to focus on Sunday’s clash with Fiorentina.”

“We are a team that talks to each other, that gets things out in the open. I think that being able to rely on your team-mates for support is absolutely fundamental,” explained the Colombian.

“The clash? I apologise to the opposing player – it’s a fair play thing. I said something in the moment but I never meant to cause anyone any harm… the ball was up for grabs and I was just thinking about getting it. I also wanted to say sorry to one of the fans who told me to wake up – I gave him a pretty dirty look, but it was just in the heat of the moment,” Guarin admitted.  

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MILAN – That’s four games and four goals for Mauro Icardi in the Europa League. And four games and four wins for Inter, with no goals conceded. Not bad as far as averages go. Yet the Argentine was keen to stress the importance of maintaining such form.

Speaking to Inter Channel after the win over Qarabag, the striker said: “Hopefully we can keep going like this now.”

He then explained: “Just before I scored I felt a kind of twinge in my calf but it’s nothing serious.” 

The striker also discussed the significance of tonight’s win: “We were all a bit upset after the Cagliari game. We needed this match against Qarabag to improve, to move on and show what we can do. Hopefully that’s the end of the mistakes now.”

Finally, he commented on his goalscoring sidekick Danilo D’Ambrosio, who has three from four himself: “I always joke around with him. He hits the back of the net every time he takes a shot!”

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MILAN – It was an important win for the Nerazzurri tonight, one that underlined their dominance of their Europa League group. It was the first group match played at home this season, and a first outing also for Inter’s elegant European strip.

Walter Mazzarri was eager to emphasise the importance of the clash: “The lads did well in what was a tough match; it was a big ask, especially after the Cagliari defeat.” The coach ensured he gave credit where it was due: “I must thank the Curva Nord. They were exceptional and got right behind the team for the entire match.”

There was also a word on injuries: “It was the team’s sixth match and they’ve been putting in an incredible amount of energy – nowadays all matches are really physical contests. I left some of the boys on the bench because they weren’t 100% and I didn’t want to risk them – Palacio and Osvaldo, for example.”

Mazzarri also touched on Hernanes and Icardi. “We’ll see how they are tomorrow; I’m not sure right now but we will of course evaluate who we can take to Florence,” said the Inter coach.

It was an important match after the shock result against Cagliari: “We’ve put the errors we made against Cagliari behind us. The team played well and the fans were excellent.”

Inevitably, Mazzarri is already looking forward to the next match. The Nerazzurri play Fiorentina at the Stadio Artemio Franchi on Sunday evening. “I don’t want to waste too much time talking. Even after a victory I want us to be focused on the next match straight away,” he said.

Inter will be wanting to get back to winning ways in Serie A. As for the Europa League, it’s four out of four and counting.

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