With a 2-0 lead over rival AC Milan in their semifinal second leg, Inter Milan, the last Italian team to win the UEFA Champions League, is in good position to advance to the final for the first time since that victory 13 years ago.
The away squad won their maiden European match against their city rivals thanks to goals from Edin Deko (age 8) and Henrikh Mkhitaryan (age 11), who both scored early in the first leg at San Siro, the venue the teams share.
The closest Milan came to a reaction was Sandro Tonali’s shot against the outside of the post in the second half.
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Hakan Alhanoglu also struck the woodwork for Inter in the opening period.
Milan has defeated their neighbors in both of their prior meetings, including at this point of their successful 2002–03 campaign.
Inter hasn’t been in the final four since winning their third European Cup in 2009–10, while Milan hasn’t advanced past the quarterfinals in 16 years, despite having an impressive record of winning eight of their previous nine games at this point.
The Rossoneri are also taking part in an all-Italian match for the second time in a row after eliminating Serie A champions Napoli in the quarterfinals.
Inter defeated Porto and Benfica in Portugal to advance to this match, with Inter winning the first leg 2-0 away in the latter match.
From the group stage through the championship, Inter has scored 198 goals in the Uefa Champions League.
Only 15 teams, including Milan (252) have surpassed 200.
Milan has won two and drawn four of their previous six games against Italian opposition, never losing an away encounter in European competition.