Inter Milan boss Roberto Mancini conceded his side's display was not up to standard their UEFA Champions League match against Sporting Lisbon. "We didn't play at a high tempo from the start against Sporting Lisbon, and they gained a bit of courage from this," Mancini said after Inter's surprise 1-0 defeat. But Mancini still believes a defeat was too harsh for his team. I have to say that in the last fifteen minutes of the game we looked for an equalizer and perhaps we were more aggressive in that last part of the game," he said. "We certainly didn't deserve the defeat, a draw might have been a fairer result." Mancini said that the dismissal of Patrick Vieira has also contributed to Inter's defeat. Vieira was sent off for head-butting Brazilian striker Liedson in the 68th minute. "It became a harder match after falling behind and the dismissal of Vieira," said the former Italy international. Despite the loss, Mancini seems unconcerned about the struggle ahead for Inter Milan. "We still have five matches and we have the chance to recover," he said. "We certainly haven't compromised our path in the Champions League. It's a pity to start with a defeat. This is the only negative thing." Meanwhile, Sporting manager Paulo Bento hailed his team's performance. "We said nothing is impossible in football, we knew about the difficulties we would face but managed to reduce those difficulties with excellent organization," said. "We were a team that was close to perfect."
