Inter Milan may have lost the battle 1–0 Wednesday but they won the war against Barcelona 3–2 in aggregate.
Jose Mourinho’s men defended valiantly despite having Thiago Motta sent off with over an hour still to play.
“It was a team of heroes, where everyone left their blood on that pitch,” Mourinho told Italian station RAI.
Inter had to ensure that they did not lose 2–0. And that’s what their game plan was—not to lose 2–0 after an electrifying 3–1 win last Tuesday in Milan.
As the expression goes, Inter “parked their bus in front of their net.”
The Inter–Barca matchup featured two brothers playing against each other in Diego Milito (Inter striker) and Gabriel Milito (Barcelona defender). The matchup also featured two world-class strikers who were swapped for each other in the offseason in Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Barcelona) and Samuel Eto’o (Inter).
Barcelona had an unbelievable 86 percent of the ball possession, according to website www.soccernet.com. The hosts outshot Inter 20–1 although goalkeeper Julio Cesar only made three saves.
Inter hardly even made it out of their own half, as Barcelona tried to poke and prod their way past their staunch defense.
Inter was dealt a heavy blow when Thiago Motta was shown a red card after he seemed to hit Sergi Busquets in the neck area. Busquets needed no encouragement to make the most of it and the former Barcelona midfielder was dismissed. Thiago Motta had received a yellow card earlier in the encounter.
Shortly thereafter, Lionel Messi had his best chance. His left-footer was deflected just wide of the goal by Julio Cesar. A classic Messi move was matched by an even better reaction by Julio Cesar.
The stalemate continued late into the second half when Barcelona central defender Gerard Pique gave the hosts a lifeline.
Pique looked offside when he received the pass in the area but he nevertheless made a move that would make Messi proud. He faked out Julio Cesar and defender Cordoba, spun around and scored into the vacant net in the 84th minute.
Inter barely survived the nervous final six minutes. Barcelona substitute Bojan Krkic had his 92nd minute goal refused after a teammate handled the ball in the lead-up to the goal.
“I reiterate that Inter are now a European force, so if they don’t win it this time, they will the next year or the one after,” said Mourinho.
“We tried through the middle and down the wings, but we couldn’t find a way through. It was difficult because there was no space between their defense and their midfield and they defended very well,” said Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola.
Inter joins Bayern Munich, who crushed Lyon 4–0 in aggregate, in the Champions League final, which will be played in Madrid on Saturday May 22.
Jose Mourinho’s men defended valiantly despite having Thiago Motta sent off with over an hour still to play.
“It was a team of heroes, where everyone left their blood on that pitch,” Mourinho told Italian station RAI.
Inter had to ensure that they did not lose 2–0. And that’s what their game plan was—not to lose 2–0 after an electrifying 3–1 win last Tuesday in Milan.
As the expression goes, Inter “parked their bus in front of their net.”
The Inter–Barca matchup featured two brothers playing against each other in Diego Milito (Inter striker) and Gabriel Milito (Barcelona defender). The matchup also featured two world-class strikers who were swapped for each other in the offseason in Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Barcelona) and Samuel Eto’o (Inter).
Barcelona had an unbelievable 86 percent of the ball possession, according to website www.soccernet.com. The hosts outshot Inter 20–1 although goalkeeper Julio Cesar only made three saves.
Inter hardly even made it out of their own half, as Barcelona tried to poke and prod their way past their staunch defense.
Inter was dealt a heavy blow when Thiago Motta was shown a red card after he seemed to hit Sergi Busquets in the neck area. Busquets needed no encouragement to make the most of it and the former Barcelona midfielder was dismissed. Thiago Motta had received a yellow card earlier in the encounter.
Shortly thereafter, Lionel Messi had his best chance. His left-footer was deflected just wide of the goal by Julio Cesar. A classic Messi move was matched by an even better reaction by Julio Cesar.
The stalemate continued late into the second half when Barcelona central defender Gerard Pique gave the hosts a lifeline.
Pique looked offside when he received the pass in the area but he nevertheless made a move that would make Messi proud. He faked out Julio Cesar and defender Cordoba, spun around and scored into the vacant net in the 84th minute.
Inter barely survived the nervous final six minutes. Barcelona substitute Bojan Krkic had his 92nd minute goal refused after a teammate handled the ball in the lead-up to the goal.
“I reiterate that Inter are now a European force, so if they don’t win it this time, they will the next year or the one after,” said Mourinho.
“We tried through the middle and down the wings, but we couldn’t find a way through. It was difficult because there was no space between their defense and their midfield and they defended very well,” said Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola.
Inter joins Bayern Munich, who crushed Lyon 4–0 in aggregate, in the Champions League final, which will be played in Madrid on Saturday May 22.
