First the tie was won and then it was contested. Inter will play in its first Champions League final since 2010 after beating its city rivals Milan 3–0 on aggregate in the semifinal, its passage effectively sealed by two goals in the first 11 minutes of the first leg. Tuesday’s 1–0 win was not comfortable, exactly, but neither did Milan ever really generate the sort of pressure to suggest a comeback was possible.
Whether it faces Manchester City or Real Madrid in Istanbul, Inter will be a significant underdog, but its chances should not be dismissed. This is a clever side that showed in two group games against Barcelona how it can set traps for opponents. As it showed again in Tuesday, when it has a lead it is good at controlling the pace of games. Left wing-back Federico Dimarco excelled across both legs, a bleached blur of energy on the left, Francesco Acerbi was solid in the mould of a classic Italian center back while Nicolo Barella, after a fairly quiet first leg, performed a vital function in maintaining possession, helping Inter to prevent Milan from ever building up a head of steam in Tuesday’s match.
There was always going to be an early Milan surge and, although it tested Inter, it yielded only one clear chance as Sandro Tonali accelerated by Henrikh Mkhitaryan and cut the ball back for Brahim Díaz who, with time to measure his shot, scuffed it slightly, allowing André Onana to save low to his right.
