Milan memories | 2011 | Gomes and Sandro recall a nervy night to remember in N17
Wed 08 March 2023, 10:45|
Tottenham Hotspur
Two Brazilian cult heroes helped us through a nerve-tingling night against Milan at the same stage of the UEFA Champions League 12 years ago. With their compatriots Richarlison, Emerson Royal and Lucas in the squad as we face the Rossoneri this time around, let’s hope history repeats itself!
All-action midfielder Sandro labels the Round of 16, second leg at the Lane on 9 March, 2011 as his ‘best game ever’. Popular goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes kept clean sheets under intense pressure at the San Siro and in the second leg, as Milan, fielding a front three of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Robinho and Pato, piled on the pressure.
It was our first season in the group stage of the Champions League, and we’d taken the competition by storm, goals galore in the group stage with memorable wins against holders Inter, FC Twente and Werder Bremen at the Lane, plus draws in Holland and Germany. Even in our only loss, we went out on our swords at Inter, Gareth Bale’s famous hat-trick dragging us back from 4-0 down to 4-3.
But this was different. The knockout phase, no second chances. We played the first leg perfectly, kept Milan at bay and then struck on the counter as Sandro fed Aaron Lennon, who took off, beat the last defender and squared for Peter Crouch to slot home the only goal. A feisty encounter then blew up as Gennaro Gattuso and Joe Jordan had their spat on the touchline.
Gomes and Sandro starred in the second leg as we kept the team that would win the Serie A title goalless again. There were scares - William Gallas cleared off the line, Gomes saved from Pato and, in the second half, Pato and Robinho had late chances, but didn’t hit the target.
The goalless draw in the second leg took us through to the quarter-finals and a meeting with Real Madrid.
Speaking to us last week, here’s what Gomes and Sandro remember about that night at the Lane, 9 March, 2011.
Sandro
“That game... that was my best game ever, for sure. The team needed this kind of game, a perfect match for a midfielder. We knew Milan would come for a win, and fight with everything they had. I did everything I could to protect Gomes, to protect the defensive line. I tried to be everywhere and everything I tried to do, I did it. That’s why it became my favourite match, my biggest match. Also, the atmosphere, it was the best, ever, for me. Everything came together. It was the biggest game for us, the second leg of a Champions League knockout, against a team like Milan. The first leg was amazing as well. I started the move for the goal. I had a good feeling going into the second leg. For me, it was my real start at Tottenham. After that, the fans really started to love me. It was a great feeling. That was why I had to go to the San Siro for the first leg this time around. To be there again, with our fans, that was special.”
Gomes
“Milan had an amazing squad. We knew the home game was going to be even harder, because they were going to have a reaction from the first leg. We knew we had to defend, to concentrate. Yes, it was a nervous night! We had no time to think about being nervous though. The game was exciting. I remember one cross where I got over Ibra to collect the ball and that gave us a little rest in the game. For the whole game, the way we performed, we did everything we needed to do to go through. I remember Sandro and Wilson Palacios bossing the middle in Milan, then Sandro again in the second leg. We always played football but, on this night, we knew we needed to hold their ambitions. They were very experienced as well. At that time, us, as a club, we were not experienced in Champions League football, especially in the knockout phase, especially against a side who play almost every season at that stage. The last five minutes... wow. The last minutes are always the hardest. You’ve got the result, but you need to defend it. I believe the last part of the game feels longer than the 90 minutes! On that particular night, we felt that on the pitch as well. It felt like the longest five minutes, but we held our nerve. We knew we could achieve something very special for the club.”
