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Southampton’s Claude Puel: No Pressure Ahead of Inter Showdown

By Aaron Preston

Southampton's players take part in training session at the San Siro Stadium in Milan on October 19, 2016, on the eve of the UEFA Europa League football match against Inter Milan. / AFP / GIUSEPPE CACACE (Photo credit should read GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP/Getty Images)
Southampton's players take part in training session at the San Siro Stadium in Milan on October 19, 2016, on the eve of the UEFA Europa League football match against Inter Milan. / AFP / GIUSEPPE CACACE (Photo credit should read GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP/Getty Images) /
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Southampton must treat tomorrow’s match versus Inter Milan as just another game, manager Claude Puel said in pregame remarks.

In less than 24 hours, eleven players from Southampton will walk through the tunnel of the San Siro and onto one of the biggest stages in all of football. Whatever the final outcome, it will be a historic moment in Saints history. The League One club that won the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy six years ago faces a titan of Italy’s Serie A who were Champions League champions in the same interval.

For fans, it will be a nerve-wracking night and tense 90 minutes tomorrow.

For manager Claude Puel, it’s just another day at the office.

“I think this game is very important, but it’s [only] one of the games for the qualification,” Puel told club media in his pregame press conference early today. “To play Inter Milan is exciting, but this is just a game for us.”

Puel’s relaxed attitude may come from experience; as a player, he played with AS Monaco in the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup semi-final in 1992. As manager of Lille and later of Lyon, he saw action in two Champions League. That sort of big-game experience undoubtedly translates to a relaxed, focused approach to affairs that Puel will hope trickles down through the Southampton dressing room tomorrow.

The Saints enter the San Siro on a seven-game undefeated streak, but have only recorded one away win in all competitions this season. That match was a 3-0 thumping of West Ham United at the London Stadium on 25 September.

To play Inter Milan is exciting, but this is just a game for us.

Inter Milan come off a three-game losing streak in domestic competition and will hope to stem the bleeding against Southampton on their home ground. The Nerazzurri currently sit bottom of their group in the Europa League, having lost to Hapoel Be’er Sheva and Sparta Praha; another loss here will effectively eliminate the highly-favored club from further advancement.

Frank DeBoer’s side is without the services of centre-back Andrea Ranocchia, who is out with an Achilles’ tendon injury. Midfielder Marcelo Brozović could see a return to the selection after being out for the past few weeks. Team captain Mauro Icardi, recently under fire for a poor relationship with Inter’s ultras, is expected to start.

Related Story: Southampton vs. Inter: Predicted Starting XI

Claude Puel’s Southampton will have to make due without defenders Cédric, Matt Targett and Ryan Bertrand, who are all recovering from injury. Cédric and Bertrand sustained injuries during the international break, while Targett went off early during last Sunday’s 3-1 win over Burnley. Forward Nathan Redmond is also expected to get the day off for rest and recuperation. Record-signing Sofiane Boufal is listed in Puel’s squad but has not been confirmed as starting.

This will be the first-ever meeting between Southampton and Inter Milan in any competition, and Southampton’s first match against any Italian team. Assuming the San Siro sells out, it will be the largest crowd the Saints have ever played in front of in a competitive match.