Manchester City host Inter Milan at the Etihad tonight in a repeat of last year’s Champions League final.
Pep Guardiola’s side completed their historic treble thanks to Rodri’s winner in Istanbul 15 months ago, but Inter held firm on the night and only a combination of Ederson’s brilliance and Romelu Lukaku’s poor finishing kept them at bay.
Inter will have revenge on their minds as they travel to British soil, and they may just get it. After all, Inter are an even better team than the last time these two teams met.
Looking back at that final in Türkiye, Inter arrived as a clear underdog. They had finished third in Serie A, 22 points behind champions Napoli.
Meanwhile, City had secured their third consecutive Premier League title and beaten rivals Manchester United in the FA Cup final. They looked unstoppable, but Inter came closer than most to finding the formula to beat them.
Manchester City beat Inter Milan to win the Champions League in Istanbul in 2023
Inter held firm but suffered from poor finishing, with Romelu Lukaku the main culprit
Simone Inzaghi has taken Inter to the next level since that final and will face City again.
They put in a performance to be proud of, and that may have been enough for some, but not for coach Simone Inzaghi.
He set out to take his team to the next level, with spectacular results.
Inter stormed to the Serie A title last season, collecting 94 points to finish 19 points ahead of closest challengers and fiercest rivals AC Milan.
It was a procession, as they lost just twice all season and their underlying numbers were phenomenal. Inter scored 18 more goals and conceded 20 fewer than the previous season as Inzaghi found the perfect balance between attack and defence.
How did he do it? Immediately after that final defeat to City, Inter lost Lukaku, Andre Onana, Marcelo Brozovic and Milan Skriniar, who had all been key players for the club.
But they recruited smartly, signing Marcus Thuram, Yann Sommer and Benjamin Pavard.
They were able to fit seamlessly into Inzaghi’s 3-5-2 system, allowing Inter to get off to a good start and gain momentum.
Inzaghi is now in his fourth season at Inter and it shows, as each player knows his role in the team. Pavard has proven to be the perfect complement to the right side of defence, the experienced Sommer has shown himself to be at home from the start, while Thuram, the son of world champion Lilian, has shone alongside captain Lautaro Martinez.
Inter stormed to the Serie A title last year, finishing 19 points ahead of their nearest challengers.
Inter’s signing was a good one, with Yann Sommer perfectly replacing Andre Onana
Lautaro Martínez has led the team brilliantly and is now a candidate for the Ballon d’Or.
The added responsibility of the armband has suited Martinez well, who finished last season with 24 league goals to take home the Serie A Golden Boot.
Some English viewers will only have seen Martinez on a few occasions and may not have been particularly impressed.
He was eliminated by eventual champions Argentina en route to the 2022 World Cup final after a difficult start to the tournament, and then missed a penalty in Inter’s shootout loss to Atletico Madrid in last season’s Champions League.
Overall, he has had a very good year. After leading Inter to Serie A glory, he won the Copa America with Argentina over the summer and is among the 30 finalists for next month’s Ballon d’Or.
He has become Inter’s talisman, and Pep Guardiola will have to be wary of his attacking threat alongside Thuram.
Add Hakan Calhanoglu (30), Nicolo Barella (27) and Alessandro Bastoni (25) to the mix – three players who are either at or approaching their prime – and Inter have a formidable squad.
Will be enough to beat City tonight? It’s a difficult question. City have won their first four league games and have won by a margin this season.
Inter need to find a way to stop Erling Haaland after his great start to the season
Inter have enough quality to cause problems for Pep Guardiola’s team at the Etihad
Erling Haaland is flying again and it’s easier said than done to contain him. Inter have also stumbled a couple of times this season, having been held to draws against Genoa and Monza in Serie A.
But a couple of weeks ago they beat Europa League champions Atalanta 4-0, proving that when they get their act together they are the real deal.
If they can find that level of performance again tonight, an upset could be in order.
