Winners of the first leg against AC Milan (2-0), Inter Milan players also won the return on Tuesday (1-0). They will play their first Champions League final since 2010.
In this 100% Milanese duel, there will ultimately be no photo and Inter is, Tuesday, May 16, the king club of the Lombard capital. But the important thing for the Nerazzurri is elsewhere since they find especially, 13 years later, the final of the Champions League. The qualification is therefore all the more tasty as it comes against the rival Rossoneri, who did not exist in this double confrontation, Inter having won the return match on Tuesday thanks to a goal from Lautaro Martinez (1-0) , after dominating the first leg (2-0).
Stunned a week ago by two goals from Edin Dzeko and Henrikh Mkhitaryan, AC Milan knew how to start this semi-final second leg in a very uncomfortable position. Scoring two goals against Inter – to at least grab extra time – is already a challenge in normal times. The task looked like an impossible mission for AC Milan, which had scored no goals in the last three meetings between the two teams, in the league (0-1), Italian Super Cup (0-3) and, therefore, , in the first leg.
Maignan keeps his team in the game
The Rossoneri’s difficulty in worrying Inter was once again verified on Tuesday. Despite the return of Rafael Leao to the starting lineup, Olivier Giroud’s teammates – who had nothing to eat – were almost never dangerous. Only the start of the match really shook the Inter supporters, when Théo Hernandez almost deceived André Onana with a floating shot (5th) before the Cameroonian goalkeeper stopped the too soft attempt by Brahim Diaz (11th).
The last opportunity for AC Milan in this semi-final return? A shot too crossed from Leao (38th). Then nothing, because the Rossoneri did not know how to take advantage of their good start, unlike Inter in the first leg. Simone Inzaghi’s players finally only had to manage the tempo of the match and try to strike against. A strategy rewarded by the goal of captain Lautaro Martinez, whose shot escaped the gloves of Mike Maignan (74th).
In the first leg, the French goalkeeper made a few saves to allow his team to stay alive in this double confrontation. Tuesday evening, “Magic Mike” released new decisive parades in front of Nicolo Barella (13th), Edin Dzeko (39th), Martinez (78th) and Romelu Lukaku (90th + 2). But Maignan can’t do it all alone and certainly can’t score the goals that AC Milan missed in this semi-final.
A rebirth for Inter
The tifosi of the 2022 Italian champion will certainly regret the late coaching of Stefano Pioli, who waited for the opener to make changes. After winning Serie A last year, AC Milan fails at the gates of the Champions League final, which it has not played since 2007. Above all, the Rossoneri will experience an end to the season full of uncertainties: fifth in the Italian championship, they are not sure to see the Champions League again next year.
For Inter, this victory is first of all a revenge on their Milanese rival, who eliminated them from the competition in the semi-finals during the 2002-2003 season. It is above all a rebirth for the Nerazzurri, who will participate in their first C1 final since 2010, the year they won the competition against Bayern Munich. Already qualified for the final of the Italian Cup which will take place on May 24, Inter Milan will play another one on June 10 in Istanbul. With one certainty: that of being an outsider in this final that the club will play against Real Madrid or Manchester City.