Inter-Milan 1-0: goals from Lautaro, Nerazzurri in the Champions League final

Inzaghi’s men repeat their victory in the second half and resist the (timid) attempts of the Rossoneri. The team that played better and believed in it the most goes to Istanbul

Lautaro Martinez’s twenty-fifth goal of the season (equaling his personal best) sent Inter to the Champions League final. On 10 June Inzaghi will challenge the winner of City-Real in Istanbul, but, waiting to know the name of the opponent, the coach from Piacenza and all the Nerazzurri can celebrate success also in the second leg of the Euro-derby: 2- 0 first leg, 1-0 tonight. “Revenge” the elimination in the semifinals of 2002-03 and the Scudetto that Pioli snatched from his former Lazio colleague last season. Few doubts about the verdict on the pitch: Inter are stronger and they prove it in the 180′ by hitting the eighth victory in a row, the fourth in a derby in this 2022-23. The Devil tries, but we see that he is out of strength and with Leao on the field almost … for the honor of signing. It’s not him and his companions are affected. They create something in the first half, but then they go down the distance and in the second half (which ended without shots on target) they leave the field and glory to the “cousins”. For Inzaghi, who has been questioned for a long time this year, it is a great revenge: in qualifying for the final, his signature is indelible. Once again he gets all the choices right and ends for the eighth time out of 12 Champions League matches with an unbeaten goal. He won’t have Guardiola or Ancelotti’s squad, but neither Pep nor Carletto will be able to rest assured when Simone and his team face each other in Istanbul.

Equilibrium

As expected, Inzaghi chooses the Champions eleven, with Brozovic and Lukaku initially on the bench. Pioli recovers Leao, on the left in the trio behind Giroud, with Diaz central in place of Bennacer, and piazza Krunic alongside Tonali; right on trocar is Messias, not Saelemaekers. Inter want to control the pace and, in the non-possession phase, wait for their opponents without going to get them “high”: the tactic is to wait for the restart from the knockout, risking as little as possible. Milan understand that they will find a field and build more: Darmian is needed to avert a danger born of a so-so exit by Onana who, however, saves great on a conclusion by Brahim Diaz from an excellent position. The match immediately became a bullfight because Turpin let contacts run to the limit and the Nerazzurri protested. The Devil accepts one-on-one with Dzeko and Lautaro in order to keep the center of gravity high and spread Hernandez like a winger: Pioli knows that, after the 0-2 draw in the first leg, he must take risks and he does so because neither of the two opposing strikers has among its best characteristics the speed on the break. In the first quarter of an hour there is certainly more Diavolo, even if the rhythms are not very high given that Krunic is not an Oscar-worthy director and Leao is afraid to accelerate, perhaps not convinced by the responses of the recently healed muscle. Inter are cautious and come out of their shells when they are dragged by the electricity of Lautaro and Barella who “snatch” as soon as they see a corridor to slip into: Mkhitaryan gets to the shot from the edge, but wastes Dzeko’s excellent side by finishing high. It is however a signal that the nerazzurri give after a start without great built dangers. Leao shows up for the first time in the 37th minute, with a slalom from him and a diagonal shot that ends just wide. The Meazza Inter holds its breath. Inzaghi’s men respond with a free-kick from Calhanoglu, deflected with a header by Dzeko: a prodigious reflex from Maignan is needed to avoid the 1-0 lead. A handful of seconds later Lautaro frees himself from the shot without framing the mirror. The match remains tense, the contrasts rough and Mkhitaryan ends up raising the white flag due to a quadriceps problem in his left thigh. Brozovic enters and goes to register with Calhanoglu who is back as a midfielder like last season. After 3 minutes of added time, it’s 0-0 at the interval. Recriminate more Milan that would have needed coldness from Diaz or Leao to change the inertia of the double challenge.

Decisive bull

The second half begins without tactical variations on the theme: Diaz sticks to Brozovic to hinder the build and Dzeko often lowers himself to provide a bank. Inter dribbled to look for the gap, but then retreated completely behind the ball line because even the forwards lend a hand to close the passing lines on Leao and Diaz. Thus Milan does not create chances and Pioli is forced to make the first move due to Thiaw’s injury: Kalulu in instead of him. Inzaghi also changes, throwing the acclaimed Lukaku and Gosens into the fray for Dzeko and Dimarco. Acerbi, who heads them all, growls even when he finds himself one-on-one against Leao and then reaches the conclusion (rebutted). Milan no longer have the strength to make themselves as dangerous as in the first round and Lautaro, a thorn in Tomori’s side throughout the match, finally breaks through: duet with Lukaku and a blow on Maignan’s post, which he doesn’t cover well. Pioli is on the ropes and tries everything with Saelemaekers and Origi for Messias and Diaz, but he too knows that the Devil is exhausted. Maignan avoided the brace, and the hundredth goal with the Nerazzurri shirt, from Toro, but qualification was now decided: the San Siro for Inter (75,567 spectators for a record gross of over 12.5 million gross) sang with joy. Inzaghi closes by also inserting Correa and Gagliardini, thinking of the Italian Cup final, and risks nothing. Istanbul awaits him. Maybe for another night of glory. The eternal one.

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