On the evening of the Grande Milano, it is the Nerazzurri half who swells his chest and feels a little bigger than the other part of the city, the Rossoneri one. The first Champions League semi-final is in fact all of Inter, which with a terrible one-two at the beginning of the game sends Milan to the floor and books the final in Istanbul. In the derby anything can happen, especially if Pioli recovers for the return Leao; but if the balance of power is the one seen tonight in the first act at San Siro, Inzaghi can believe it much more than his Milan colleague.
To sign the final 2-0 are Dzeko and Mkhitarya, in goal in three minutes at the beginning of the game. It is the image of a Milan that has lost its compass and of an Inter that has rediscovered its verve and knows how to be devastating. If anything, the flaw of the evening was not having had the ferocity to make the third goal that would have killed any opponent's hope. And to the goal, even at 2-0, Inter appeared closer and closer, even when Milan chased it. Among the sets of the Curves and VIPs in the stands - from Djokovic to La Russa - at the beginning the shocking pink hair of Theo Hernandez stands out, an omen of the Milan evening, and the panel in which the Rossoneri embrace each other in the center of the court, to make a group.
On the other front, Inter is on the pitch with shirts without sponsors, and it looks like a derby of the past. Leao is also sitting in the stands, who cannot recover and consoles himself only partially with the upcoming renewal. In its place, Salemakers. In Inter, on the other hand, Inzaghi relies on the most fit attacking pair of the moment, Dzeko-Lautaro, reserving Lukaku's freshness and physical strength for the occasion. The beginning is pure chasing of the opponent. Inter keep the ball, Milan attack them. They look more like chess than football, but queen and perhaps even king if they eat the terrible one-two Nerazzurri, between 8 'and 11', at the first real actions: first Dzeko, on the fly on the corner that opens the account of corners, signs the 1-0, then Mikhtaryan enters the center of the area on the restart and veil of Lautaro and signs the doubling.
Milan, who also immediately lost Bennacer replaced by Messias in the three behind Giroud, swerved conspicuously; in the 15th minute there is only the post to take away from Chalanoglu the joy of the third goal. The Rossoneri struggle to regroup, while the opponent looks for the knockout blow. The first blow of the Devil's tail is at half an hour: Messias' cross, Calabria's heel is out. Two minutes after Lautaro's fall into the box, it was worth the penalty, which the VAR took away from Inter, fortunately for Milan. With Dumfries under the goal (34') Inter remain dangerous. Salemakers tries to shake the Rossoneri maneuver on the wing, disordered in the dribble and without changes of pace.
At the resumption, therefore, Pioli's team tries to charge headlong in search of the goal that reopens the games in view of the return, and stands out in the first minutes: a shot by Diaz, a descent by Messias that wastes to the side while Giroud is free. Inter, dragged by the dynamism of Barella and the class of Dezko, appears more effective. Part of the credit also goes to the unusual central holes of the Rossoneri defense: there in the 8th minute Dzeko slips in for the safe shot, but Maignan keeps his team alive. At the end of the first hour, Inzaghi has already changed Mkhitaryba for Brozovic for better management, while Pioli inserts Origi for Salemakers. The aim is to increase the offensive potential, and the good opportunity has it on the right Tonali at the end of a nice Rossoneri combination: it is the 18 ', the post and a slight deviation of Bastoni extinguish the Rossoneri hopes. Lukaku's time also struck, inside for Dzeko, when both teams seemed tired, in the 25th minute. The game actually goes to sleep, Milan does not sting and Inter does not dare, even if the only good ball is his and the substitute Gagliardini wastes it. Appointment in six days, always at San Siro, for another derby. And another story, Pioli hopes, because now the final in Istanbul has more the Nerazzurri colors.
Inzaghi, "great race, one step away from the dream" - "We had an extraordinary first half: now it's right to be happy but we know that we still need a small step to make a dream come true. It's not over, it's not over...". This was said by Simone Inzaghi, Inter coach, after the victory over Milan in the semi-final first leg. "We could have scored more than two goals - he added to TV8 - The guys were good at covering every inch of the field, I had asked them to play with head and heart and they did it".
Pioli, "ko heavy but we believe in recovery". "In the first one, Inter were better than us, more effective in the chances created. It's a heavy result, but we have to believe that by playing as we know we can recover." Stefano Pioli, at Sky, tried to shake his Milan after the knockout in the Champions League derby. "The team in the first half had to manage the ball better and lost many duels. In the second we played with a different rhythm - continued the coach - and we did better". In the second leg Pioli will try to reverse the situation "playing from Milan, with quality and intensity, putting a lot of pressure on Inter".
Many VIPs present at the Scala del Calcio for this night of stars: at San Siro many personalities from the world of sport and entertainment arrived at the spicciolata, expected for the semi-final first leg between Milan and Inter. In the list of personal expectations, Nole Djokovic and Pierre Gasly, Matteo Berrettini and Melissa Satta, Antonio Giovinazzi and Elettra Lamborghini. Many influencers, actors and TV personalities, with the presence in the stands also of Il Volo, Alessandro Cattelan, Lazza, Irama, Rkomi, Sangiovanni and Gianmaria.
The official line-ups of Milan-Inter: Rossoneri on the pitch with Saelemaekers from the first minute and Leao in the stands, Nerazzurri with the former Calhanoglu in place of Brozovic. Milan therefore lined up with a 4-2-3-1, with Maignan in goal, Calabria defensive line, Kjaer, Tomori, Theo Hernandez, midfielder with Krunic-Tonali, and then Diaz, Bennacer, and Saelemaekers behind Giroud. Inzaghi lined up Inter with the 3-5-2: Darmian, Acerbi and Bastoni in front of the goal defended by Onana, then Dumfries, Barella, Calhanoglu, Mkhitaryan, Dimarco, and in attack the pair Dzeko-Lautaro.
A "very exciting appointment", at the "end of a very difficult journey. But being here means having worked hard, in an anomalous year for the Winter World Cup." So the CEO of Inter, Beppe Marotta, to the microphones of Prime Video a few minutes of the Champions League semi-final against Milan. The manager regretted the "ups and downs in the league" that instead "we did not have in the Champions League". "The final evaluation of the season must be made at the end," Marotta added. "We have honored the competitions in which we have participated. It remains the black dot of the championship in which perhaps we surrendered too quickly, and not only us, also for the merit of Napoli" concluded the Nerazzurri manager.