Since the 2023 Champions League finalists were confirmed as maiden title hunters Manchester City and three-time European Champions Inter Milan, the general consensus amongst football pundits and fans alike is that there is only going to be one outcome at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul on June 10.
That is, of course, that Pep Guardiola’s side are going to lift the continent’s most prestigious piece of silverware in Turkey on Saturday and finally fulfill the long-time goal of Abu Dhabi ruler Sheik Mansour since he bought the club and began his dynasty in the northwest of England back in 2008.
On current form, it is very hard to argue against that being case and Man City are as short as 2/9 in the Champions League winner betting to complete the final leg of the treble having already reined in Arsenal to win a third-straight Premier League title and beaten cross-city rivals Manchester United in the FA Cup final.
Indeed, everything is pointing to a Manchester City victory and they are a much stronger team than Inter Milan on paper. But crazy things have happened at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in the past, with Liverpool coming back from 3-0 down at halftime to defeat Inter’s San Siro rivals AC Milan in the 2005 Champions League final.
And when you consider that this is a one-off match on the grandest stage in club football, it begs the question: do Inter Milan really have no chance at all of heading back to Italy after the game with the big-eared trophy in their hand luggage?
Manchester City are deserved favourites when you look at their squad and what they have already achieved this season, not just in terms of silverware but also dispatching Bayern Munich (4-1) and Real Madrid (5-1) already in the knockout stages of the Champions League, but it would be foolish to rule out I Nerazzurri entirely.
You only need to go as far back as 2021 to see that being the champions of England and the overwhelming favourites for the Champions League doesn’t mean guaranteed success, as Guardiola’s men were both those things two years ago heading to their first European final — only to be stunned 1-0 by Thomas Tuchel’s Chelsea.
Man City and Guardiola himself should have learned a big lesson that night and a lot of the key members of that squad are going to be involved again on Saturday night — plus the addition of Erling Haaland’s firepower. But they arguably have more on the line than Inter Milan and that increased pressure could have a big bearing.
Inter will not be pushovers regardless. They were third in the Serie A this season, albeit 18 points adrift of runaway leaders Napoli, but they won the Coppa Italia and the Supercoppa for the second year in a row and that cup form in itself could be a good indication that they are not going to be an easy team to beat in this format.
The San Siro side will also have no problems with the fact Manchester City are going to dominate proceedings and that they will have to do a lot of defending with their backs to the wall. Simeone Inzaghi’s interchangeable 3-5-2 — that will most likely be 5-3-2 when Man City are attacking — is built for exactly that and three centre-backs mean more men can maintain Haaland.
Inter have also shown great defensive acumen thus far in the tournament. In fact, they lead the way with the least goals conceded and the most clean sheets in the competition — including goalkeeper Andre Onana keeping the ball out of the back of his net in five of their six knockout encounters against Porto, Benfica and AC Milan.
Going forward, Inter have their own dangers. Captain Lautaro Martinez hasn’t set the competition alight with three goals and three assists in 12 games, but he is renowned for stepping up to the mark and scoring in big games — like against Milan in both the last round of the Champions and the Supercoppa final and Fiorentina in the Coppa Italia final. Former Man City striker Eden Dzeko has also contributed with four strikes and one assist in the same number of outings.
