![]() Simone Inzaghi’s side may not have as many superstars as City, but they have a grizzled back line, dangerous wing-backs and a hard-working midfield in which Nicolo Barella excels. He has scored 14 goals this season and has been an excellent foil for Inter’s star forward, Lautaro Martinez. ![]() Inter know what they are up against too, not least veteran 37-year-old forward Edin Dzeko. How they played in a big occasion, in a derby game in the Champions League semi-final, is never easy. “They’ve got incredible players, we can all see that. “I mean, they’re in the Champions League final for a reason,” warned John Stones, whose move from central defence into midfield has been key to City’s outstanding form. They have maybe not faced a team of City’s calibre, but they have a clear Cup pedigree, having recently retained the Coppa Italia. Yet as Guardiola eyes what would be the third Champions League of his career, City cannot overlook the threat of an Inter team who qualified from their group ahead of Barcelona before seeing off Porto, Benfica and city rivals AC Milan. But it is something we have not won yet and it is something that we want to win. Could I come here and think about all the amount of games and trophies we would win in eight years? “I’ve been here eight years and it’s been incredible. “We’ve still not won it yet,” warned Kevin De Bruyne. So there is surely nothing to fear in the final against the third-best team in Italy, except perhaps their own past demons in crucial Champions League games. That 1-0 defeat at Brentford came on the last day of the Premier League season, after the title had been secured.Ĭity have not lost in Europe this season and dished out heavy beatings to RB Leipzig, Bayern Munich and Madrid in the knockout rounds. ![]() The Norwegian has scored 52 goals since arriving from Borussia Dortmund, and City land in Turkey having been beaten just once in their last 27 games. Now they can match the achievement of Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United in 1999 by beating Inter at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium and securing a treble.īeaten finalists in 2021, City lost in last year’s semi-finals to Real Madrid, but the addition of Erling Haaland appears to have taken Guardiola’s team to a new level.
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