Ranieri laments lack of luck

Inter Milan now struggling to recover something from its difficult season

Claudio Ranieri complained his side had been short of luck as it was sent packing from the Champions League by Marseille.

A goal from Diego Milito seemed to have secured a period of extra-time until Brandao struck for the French in injury-time to send Marseille into the quarterfinals.

Inter still had time to win the second-round, second-leg tie with the last kick of the match, but was eliminated on away goals.

Ranieri felt his side had been the better one over the two legs and deserved something more.

"It's the most unpleasant experience I've had because when a team fights and tries to do everything and even goes beyond what it can do and creates more chances over the 180 minutes only to lose and go out, it leaves a bitter taste in the mouth," he said.

"We tried, we had a go, we didn't manage it but we know we've done everything we could.

"We went there (to Marseille), we had three chances with (Diego) Forlan, (Mauro) Zarate and (Dejan) Stankovic but they scored in the 93rd minute.

"Here we had chances with (Wesley) Sneijder and Milito and then we scored through Milito but then we conceded."

Ranieri's job was rumored to be on the line before this game, with his future apparently directly linked to progression.

But the coach is not worried about such speculation and is just concentrating on trying to pick up his team.

It is now out of the Champions League and Italian Cup and it faces an uphill battle just to qualify for next season's Europa League.

"I will go to bed, sleep and then get up and take training. Those who take training in Italy are used to this thing (rumors of facing the sack)," said Ranieri.

"We need to react as we are out of the Champions League now. We have 11 matches in the league, we'll give our best to try to get into a European competition.

"When a team creates more than the other but goes out, they have to compliment the others because that's sport.

"In the league we'll try to do the best we can, just as we've been doing for a long time."

Marseille coach Didier Deschamps admitted fortune had smiled on his team, but said it earned victory through its never-say-die attitude.

"Of course there's a bit of luck because it exists in football, but it doesn't come on its own," he said.

"I insist on this because as a player I was made this way. I remember from Euro 2000 that you have to believe to the end.

"I try to transmit this to my players, I repeat it hundreds or thousands of times.

"Sometimes it helps to transmit this, it's very severe for Inter and Ranieri, both in the first leg and now again.

"But, then again, in the last league match we conceded in the 89th minute: this is football."

Deschamps refused to speculate on who he would like to face in the next round, having got himself in trouble before the draw for this round by suggesting that Cypriots Apoel Nicosia were the weakest side left in the competition.

"Our aim was to be in the last 16, now we've surpassed that so we'll see Friday who's put in front of us," he said.

"It will be very difficult, there are some huge clubs, but to be part of the top eight teams in Europe, I doubt there were many before the match who would've thought it.

"There are two big favorites in Real Madrid and Barcelona and then just behind them there is Bayern Munich.

"Then there's Napoli who had a great game (against Chelsea in the first leg) and AC Milan have had a big win, and then the others are all a bit less strong."

Agence France-Presse in Milan