Champions League, Inter in the final after 13 years: Milan still beaten (1-0)
[ad_1]
It was already written, but the second Euro derby certifies it: it is Inter who fly to Istanbul on 10 June for the next Champions League final where they will challenge the winner of the other semi-final, the one between Manchester City and Real Madrid which will be played tonight after the previous draw (2-2). It’s hard to say which is preferable. Both represent the best aristocracy of European football. But in a dry ending, nothing can be taken for granted. The Nerazzurri’s San Siro is delirious. And so is Piazza Duomo, invaded by fans cheering for a dream that has finally come true: in fact, it had been 13 years, since the Historic Treble (2010), that Inter hadn’t been able to reach the final, the sixth time in their long and glorious European history.
This time, in the second leg, there wasn’t the massacre of a week ago when the Nerazzurri, in eleven minutes, with a breathtaking double, had laid the foundations for the next round. The one-nil goal scored by Lautaro a quarter of an hour from the end (left footed shot at the near post that surprises Maignan) confirms the dominance of Inzaghi’s team which, currently, can count on a much more incisive attack than the Rossoneri, always in difficulty when he has to close at the net. This is Milan’s fourth consecutive defeat in a derby. It’s not a casuality. Four derbies in which Pioli’s team has never scored. A significant fact that confirms the gap that divides the two rivals.
As soon as they can, Inter scores. Milan is struggling a lot. And even Leao is not enough. This was also seen in this second match when the Rossoneri, after a decent start, had a great opportunity with Diaz, well served by Tonali, to break the deadlock. It was the eleventh. A tempting opportunity, almost a penalty on the move, which however the Spaniard, one of the worst, threw away with a weak low shot that was easily saved by Onana. With two goals to make up for, if these opportunities don’t come to fruition as soon as possible then everything goes uphill.
A better Milan than in the first leg, more squared and determined sure, but not enough to overturn such a heavy ballast. The expected return of Leao, although also important psychologically, has not however changed the balance. Only once, in the 37th minute of the first half, did the Portuguese make San Siro tremble with one of his deadly rides on the left: however, when he got to the point, from a very angled position, he only grazed the opposite post. A brighter Leao would probably have hit the mark. Not this Leao, almost a stunt double of what we know. But it’s not with hypotheses that you win the derbies and, above all, you go to the Champions League final.
More cautious, Inter hasn’t been watching anyway. And also in the first half, immediately after Leao’s chance, Maignan, with an exceptional reflex, had neutralized a poisonous header from the usual Dzeko, author once again of an excellent game together with Lautaro. The Bosnian, in the second half, when the exchange round began, was taken over by Lukaku, again decisive in the occasion of Lautaro’s goal, in his 24th hit of the season. A goal that came after a nice duet with the Belgian, never seriously disturbed by the Rossoneri defenders.
[ad_2]
Source link
