Milan need cutting edge, says Oddo

[TAREK®]

AC Milan defender Massimo Oddo believes AC Milan need to sharpen their cutting edge if they are to get past Arsenal FC in the second leg of their UEFA Champions League Round of 16 encounter on Tuesday.

More pressure
The Rossoneri are confident of turning over their English rivals but after admitting that his side were fortunate to come away from London with a goalless draw – Emmanuel Adebayor hit the bar in the dying seconds – Oddo feels the onus is on Milan to put the Gunners' rearguard under more pressure at San Siro.

'Lucky'
"We were a bit lucky in London," said Oddo. "Especially with the last move of the match, so we'll settle for the draw. We lacked a little bit of incisiveness in attack and maybe we didn't counterattack quickly enough. It wasn't exactly a vintage performance but we managed to hang in there; we were very compact and the result could certainly serve us well for the return leg."

Travel sickness
Arsenal were forced to settle for second in their qualifying group largely as a result of their disappointing away results, which saw them pick up just one win on their travels. "Let's hope Arsenal continue that away form," Oddo said. "But, more importantly, we must ensure we produce more up front ourselves. This Milan side, if it plays to its potential, will get through to the next round."

'Down to us'
Milan can take heart from last season, when a goalless draw at Celtic FC at the same stage of the competition preceded a 1-0 extra-time victory against Gordon Strachan's side, on the way to a seventh European crown. Oddo is comfortable the situation is in hand. "We've drawn 0-0 away from home so now it's down to us," he added. "If we manage to play at our level, which is something we always do in these big matches, we've got a great chance. We rarely get it wrong in important games.

'Devastating'
"Arsenal are a devastating side. They run a lot and are very organised but they make a number of mistakes at the back and we can certainly hurt them. Adebayor, in particular, is a good player but, more than that, they are very good at creating space as a team. They continually swap positions and create space, and before you know it the area left by one player has been filled by another team-mate, so you must always be very careful.

'Clinical'
"But we know what we need to do to improve from the first leg. We need to improve in attack. And by that I don’t intend any criticism of our strikers. We just need to attack better as a side. I had a chance of my own in the first leg which I should have done better with so we must all work hard to create chances and be clinical enough to finish them off."

Source: UEFA