Opening the floodgates
Winning the first one is so often the hardest and don't Manchester City know it. They failed to turn up in Porto two years ago and for all the claims they were ready this time, that they knew what to expect, they hardly exerted their authority on a tense and tetchy game in Istanbul.
But finals are for winning and for the second time in a week that is what City have done. For the first time, they are champions of Europe. At the risk of being presumptuous, it won't be the last time we are saying that.
City now know what it takes to win this competition. They know how to combat the nerves, to deal with that frantic energy. To cope with the pressure and the expectation.
Let's make no mistake, the treble winners will start as favourites for next season's Champions League. Don't bet against a repeat appearance in the Wembley final.
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They might not have shown it with the quality of their performance at the Ataturk Stadium, but they are the best team in Europe. Just ask Bayern Munich and Real Madrid, beaten by a combined scoreline of 7-0 at the Etihad in the quarter-final and semi-final.
The one comfort the rest of Europe had was that Pep Guardiola's side hadn't won this competition. The dream had become an obsession, as Kevin De Bruyne and Guardiola had alluded to 24 hours before the game.
Now the gigantic, mesmerising trophy will be at the Etihad next season. City have broken their European hoodoo and as long as Guardiola stays, don't be surprised if they exert the kind of stranglehold over this competition that they have done in the Premier League.
Rodri's moment of calm
City had spent three-quarters of the game looking nervous and rattled in Istanbul, but when the moment came for a touch of calm the ball fell to the ideal man.
For all of Erling Haaland's headline-grabbing stats this season, it's arguably Rodri who has been City's most important player. He has had to be given Kalvin Phillips' struggles and the fact he was so out of sorts in the first half against Inter Milan heavily contributed to the fact City looked so out of sorts. The two almost go hand in hand.
They can get by if Haaland has an off day, but if Rodri isn't on it, then so often City aren't on it. It was the case at the Ataturk Stadium. But the Spaniard fixed that issue in the second half.
Just as this game looked to be heading for a stalemate, City burst into life. There was a touch of fortune with the way the ball rolled to Rodri, but he approached it serenely when he could have panicked given how the night had gone so far.
Instead, he saw his spot, threading a line between three Inter defenders, hiding the ball from Andre Onana and watching it nestle in the corner of the net. Cue bedlam. It was a fitting reward for someone who could be the hero of City's season.
Stylish Stones
In a City team that spent most of the night looking ragged and out of sorts, John Stones was an oasis of calm and a beacon of brilliance.
There was one spell in the first half when he drifted to the left to find that patch of free grass once again, spun infield, moved the ball on and then collected it five or six seconds later on the right when he was again in space. Time and again he turned away from Inter pressure and kept the ball moving for City.
This game showed how adaptable Stones has become. Having spent the last six weeks or so moving into midfield from the centre of defence, he was back to doing it from right-back, but he was brilliant once again.
When City had the ball and he collected it in midfield he looked every inch a world-class central midfielder. Everything he did on the ball was stylish and smooth and he made it look so simple. In a team of all the talents, the man from Barnsley looks as good a footballer as any of them and possibly the most intelligent on the pitch.
Guardiola's messages
The first half had reached the midway point when Guardiola shouted to get his players' attention and placed both palms downwards. Calm down was the message and they did look rattled. Inter had started well and were clearly growing in confidence with every loose touch from a blue shirt.
The message didn't have an immediate impact. A few minutes later Ederson's pass to Ruben Dias was sloppy and the centre-back was on his heels. Nicolo Barella tried the lob but it was a poor effort. At that stage, Guardiola indicated for his players to breathe and shouted 'relax, relax' to them.
Maybe he got the chance he wanted to get a better message across when De Bruyne required some treatment on the half-hour mark. While the Belgian midfielder was attended to by the physios, Guardiola called the remaining nine outfield players together and issued some instructions for 20 seconds or so.
It summed up the tension in the performance and Guardiola could sense it early on. By then he knew his team would have to stumble over the line any way they could.
De Bruyne's heartbreak
It was the beginning of the end for De Bruyne when he received that treatment. He tried to go on for another five minutes but was clearly struggling and was replaced by Foden.
De Bruyne must be cursing his luck in Champions League finals, having gone off injured in Porto two years ago when he suffered a broken nose, broken eye socket and concussion after a dreadful collision with Antonio Rudiger. The injury was more innocuous this time, but that didn't make it any less painful for a player who deserves to star in the biggest games.
It would have been even more frustrating for the Belgian because he had had such a poor game for 30 minutes. He wasn't alone in that regard for City, but twice he overhit what for him were simple clipped crosses and one chance to play Jack Grealish in saw him pass the ball straight out of play.
De Bruyne did manage to create City's best chance of the half, with a ball through to Haaland, but that was a rare good moment and the second time in a row, he has failed to leave his mark in the biggest club game on the calendar.
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