Milan is blue after Inter cruise to final

Trailing 2-0 from the first leg, Milan had pushed hard in the first half, spearheaded by Rafael Leao who shot across the goal and past the post with one of his side's best chances, but after an open first period, neither side were able to open the scoring of the second leg. Mike Maignan was one to thank for keeping the score goalless, preventing several chances the hosts had. The Frenchman also superbly dropped to his knees to collect Edin Dzeko's glancing header from Hakan Calhanoglu's pacy free-kick.

Just when Milan desperately needed something out of the second period, Inter tightened up and looked comfortable defending their lead. To really cement their dominance, soon into the second forty-five, Inter made a couple of key substitutions, with Lukaku's introduction proving the spark that Inter needed to extend their lead. Absent for much of the season with injuries and with a damaged reputation following a disastrous World Cup with Belgium, Lukaku has slowly worked his way back to his best.

Things went from bad to worse for Milan when Martinez exchanged passes with substitute Romelu Lukaku and drilled a shot from inside the penalty area that Milan keeper Mike Maignan allowed in at his near post. That goal effectively killed off the tie. for Milan, who were unable to do anything to force a comeback.

The forward on loan from Chelsea's admission into the affair appeared to be the catalyst which caused problems in the Milan defence and created Martinez's goal to guarantee their place in their first Champions League final since the last time they won European club football's biggest prize under Jose Mourinho in 2010.

This result gives Inter a chance to fight for their fourth Champions League crown in Istanbul, where they will be going up against either Real Madrid or Manchester City. Inter will undoubtedly be the underdogs against either of those two in the final in Istanbul on June 10, but the way they managed both legs of this all-Milan tie suggests they will be hard to beat.

 

May 16, 2023