Inter knocked Barca out of the Champions League final: The brave 'old men'

1. More cold than emotional, Inter Milan ended Barcelona's exciting adventure in Europe this season, when everyone thought Hansi Flick and his team had already secured a ticket to Munich, where the final will take place on May 31.

Inter burst into joy of victory. Photo: Inter.it

Barca's passionate journey, with a core of confident and fearless young players (starting line-up average age 25.8; 4 players of Olympic age), was lost to the more mature Inter (30.2 years old; 4 players over 31).

Simone Inzaghi's Inter know how to hide, stay away from the media spotlight and explode at the right time.

After all, the black and blue striped team is the antidote to Barcelona's explosive attacking style, just as Jose Mourinho defeated Pep Guardiola's team in 2010 en route to winning the Champions League .

The match was full of emotion with breathtaking moments, only ending in extra time after Barca lost the victory in stoppage time.

At that point, Barca players and their fans were about to celebrate their ninth comeback of the season, coming from 2-0 down at half-time to finish 3-2, with Raphinha scoring late.

But the Italians' tenacity overwhelmed the ambition of the young team that Hansi Flick built.

Lautaro Martinez opened the scoring in the rain at Giuseppe Meazza. Photo: EFE

2. The coaches kept the same tactics as the first leg. Inzaghi had Lautaro Martinez back; Flick used two reserve full-backs, Eric Garcia and Gerard Martin.

The plan to put Inigo Martinez on the left wing, combined with Araujo to form a 4-center defense, failed at Montjuic, and was not trusted at Giuseppe Meazza.

Flick opted for tweaks rather than complete changes to better defend set pieces, along with Denzel Dumfries' sprints – key factors for Inter to score in the first leg.

Inzaghi's plan was also collective: the ball had to be stopped from reaching Lamine Yamal. The best man, in the end, was goalkeeper Sommer.

Barca exploded in the second half, but not enough to win. Photo: FCB

The pressure was on from the start at the Giuseppe Meazza. It was not easy for Barca to win the one-on-one battles against a physical and fast Inter side.

Lautaro Martinez and Marcus Thuram were always waiting to cut in, making it difficult for Barca to develop the ball in their home field.

The effect came after more than 20 minutes: Dimarco's close approach caused Dani Olmo to make a mistake, he released the ball for Dumfries to escape and assist Lautaro to finish.

Barca woke up after conceding the goal. Pedri took control of the game while Inter retreated to defend and counter-attack, something they had mastered during four years under Inzaghi.

Controlling the ball, Barcelona failed to make a breakthrough. On the contrary, VAR intervened to award Inter a penalty, when Cubarsi fouled Lautaro. Hakan Calhanoglu shot accurately from 11 meters to double the gap.

The magical moment of veteran Acerbi. Photo: EFE-EPA

Barca were confused when Dani Olmo and Lamine Yamal were blocked. Surprise came from the underrated players: Gerard Martin assisted Eric Garcia to score in the 54th minute.

It was also Martin who, 6 minutes later, had another pass for Dani Olmo to equalize 2-2. The game turned around, making 4,000 Blaugrana fans excited, believing in a comeback.

3. Barcelona 's recklessness and risk-taking – or naivety, depending on how you think about it – caused Inter's sophisticated defence to collapse. It was the Nerazzurri who made the mistake and had to rely on 36-year-old goalkeeper Sommer.

When Inter huddled together, Barca rose up. In the 88th minute, Sommer tried but could not stop the second shot from Raphinha, Barca's best player in the Champions League.

In high spirits, Lamine Yamal almost scored the fourth goal for Barca, but the 17-year-old's shot hit the post.

Frattesi scores a beautiful goal. Photo: EFE

Never underestimate the brilliance of Italian teams, especially Inter. Dumfries was excellent on the right wing and passed to Acerbi – the 37-year-old centre-back – to overwhelm Araujo and shoot into the Barca net. In the 90+3 minute, the score of 3-3 at Montjuic was repeated at Meazza.

The final ticket was decided in extra time. There, Inter finished off their opponents: Thuram made a beautiful breakthrough, Taremi made a wall, Frattesi curled the ball with precision down to the millimeter, leaving Szczesny helpless.

Lamine Yamal attempted to recreate Andres Iniesta's legendary moment at Stamford Bridge in 2009, but Sommer – the man of the match – made an incredible save.

Barca's emotions were blocked. Inter, consisting of "old men" with little investment in transfer, were worthy of a ticket to Munich.

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/inter-ha-barca-vao-chung-ket-cup-c1-nhung-trai-tim-qua-cam-2398485.html