Taribo West played for both AC Milan and Inter Milan and he relives the rivalry ahead of the UEFA Champions League semi-finals clash later tonight.

West likened the rivalry between the Milan clubs to the hostile South-west derby in Nigeria between Stationery stores and Shooting Star, from back in the day.

The former CB said in Italy, although there weren’t laid out boundaries between fans of the Milan clubs, things could quickly get messy and physical.

Any derby took its toll on Players inclusive and the Milan derby is no exception, Taribo West insists the pressure and passion of the fans rubs off on the performance of the players, ensuring that every game was a feisty affair.

“There is no boundary between the fans but the rivalry is very tough, it’s just like those days in Nigeria when Stationary Stores playing against Shooting Stars it’s always between life and death,” said West on Brila FM’s Breakfast show “No Holds Barred”.

“The match will have a lot of duels and battles, the fans will fight before the game and the players will also put in all that they have to make sure that their team wins.

“If you cross any of the boundaries in the stadium it ends up in a confrontation, and it can get physical, but they don’t take it to the city. The location of the two teams are also different even though they are in the same city.”

He recalls that Players often had to also carry a certain persona as do fans when moving around the City, in the wake of the Milan derby.

“As a player, if you don’t have heart, you will have a problem moving around the city. If you go out you will be abused, stoned at, harassed and intimidated, just to demoralize you and bring a certain kind of fear so that psychologically you will be affected and won’t be able to give your best.

“They can even come to your house singing loudly and even throwing missiles into your compound.”