Leonardo endeared himself to Inter president Massimo Moratti by leading the club to a dramatic Champions League last 16 victory at Bayern Munich.

Inter won the tie on away goals to advance to the last eight, having trailed 1-0 from the first leg but winning 3-2 at the Allianz Arena on Tuesday night.

Moratti told the club’s official website www.inter.it: “I would give a 10 (out of 10) to Leonardo. This was a very tough game from a psychological point of view and he was excellent.”

Moratti was not surprised by his team’s terrific comeback.

Trailing 2-1 at the interval, Inter hit back with two second-half goals to remain alive in the competition.

“This team has personality, character and is very united,” Moratti said.

“Even when things go badly, this team is able to turn things around and that is also the merit of Leonardo.

“We controlled the game in the second half and once the team again felt sure of itself, we took the win home.”

Leonardo, meanwhile, hailed his team’s never-say-die attitude.

“We needed to show courage in order to beat a team like Bayern that plays great attacking football,” the Brazilian said. “We controlled the second half and while we could have lost our heads, instead we always stayed in the game.”

Leonardo felt his side sent a strong message to future rivals.

“This is an historic win,” he said. “You can have good or bad times but what happened in Munich is a sign of what Inter can be.”

Inter goalkeeper Julio Cesar thanked his team-mates for standing by him following his blunder against Bayern Munich.

The Brazilian keeper fumbled a shot from Arjen Robben to put the Italians on the back foot, however, they bounced back to win 3-2 at the Allianz arena and advance to the quarter-finals of the Champions League.

Cesar said: “It was a very difficult moment. After giving away that goal I wanted to return home to Milan immediately, on foot or by horse, but then I recovered.

“The goal was a cold shower but thanks to my team-mates we recovered.

“I want to compliment them.”

Julio Cesar had made a mistake in the first leg that gave Bayern a 1-0 win in Milan.

In that game, he failed to cling on to the ball before Bayern’s Mario Gomez scored in the last minute.

“Mistakes help you to grow,” he said. “The error I made was serious, more than the one I made in the opening leg.

“But fortunately, I am here to talk about our victory.”

That was secured when Goran Pandev scored the winner two minutes from time.

“When Pandev scored the winner, I started to cry,” Julio Cesar said. “I thanked God and my team-mates.

“I would have been devastated had we lost. I just hope I stop making any further mistakes.”

Moratti said of Julio Cesar: “When a goalkeeper makes a mistake like he did, it’s just an accident.

“We cannot ever judge him because he makes extraordinary saves, as he showed against Bayern.”