Ex-Manchester United defender Matteo Darmian reveals the reasoning behind strange backheel choice against Man City

The Serie A champions showcased a strong defensive performance to secure a point at the Etihad Stadium. However, they missed a golden opportunity to take the lead in the second half when Darmian found himself one-on-one with the goalkeeper.

However, instead of opting to shoot, Darmian attempted to backheel the ball to Nicolo Barella, who was running behind him.

But Darmian’s backheel was wayward and City were able to recover possession as Barella also slipped to the turf.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan, another former United player, also missed an excellent chance in the second half as he skied his shot from 12 yards out into the stands.

Speaking about Darmian’s backheel after the game, Inzaghi said: ‘I asked Darmian: ‘What were you playing at?’

‘He said: ‘I could hear Barella behind me.’ He wanted to pass to him.

‘I was more upset about Mkhitaryan. I fell into a state of despair when he missed. I was convinced he was going to score.’

Meanwhile, Pep Guardiola praised his Manchester City players despite failing to find a way past Inter.

‘I’m really, really satisfied for the game we played,’ Guardiola said.

‘Defending how they defend, so deep. So you can’t expect to create a lot of chances but the chances we created were so clear, in these type of games, they make the difference.

‘We played much better than the final of the Champions League two years ago. I liked everything from my team today. I would have preferred to win but there are still seven games. We will see what happens.’

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