We prefer Manchester City in the final! Why does Zanetti and Inter want to avoid Real in the Champions League final?

Inter Milan won the Champions League semi-final against AC Milan and deservedly advanced to the final. This will be the first time in 13 years that they will play Manchester City or Real Madrid. Inter vice-president Javier Zanetti would prefer an English side. Why?

Inter Milan won both Champions League semi-final duels against arch rivals AC Milan and deservedly advanced to the final.

They got off to a great start in the first leg, punishing a sluggish AC with two goals in the opening game. First Edin Džeko struck in the eighth minute, then Henrik Mkhitaryan added a goal three minutes later to make it 2-0.

The Nerazzurri were pretty much in control in the return leg and only allowed their opponents two big chances. However, neither Brahim Díaz nor Rafael Leão converted AC’s big chances.

On the other hand, Inter secured their progress in the 74th minute with a 1:0 goal from Lautaro Martinez. Inter will therefore play the Champions League final again after 13 years and can look forward to one of the Manchester City – Real Madrid pairing.

The Nerazzurri, it should be added, have finally managed to beat or eliminate their arch rivals in the knockout stage of the world’s most prestigious club competition.

Rather Manchester City…

Inter vice-president Javier Zanetti then said in a recent interview with Sky Sport Italia that he would rather avoid Real Madrid in the Champions League final and choose Manchester City as his opponent in June. Why?

“I would like to avoid Real Madrid because this competition is perfect for them,” Zanetti told Sky Sport Italia after the final whistle.

“But the most important thing is that we arrived here. It was a difficult journey, it’s not easy to play a derby in the semi-finals. I managed to do it and in 2003 I left as a loser,” he sees the importance of the victory.

“It was hard, but we did an incredible thing. The credit goes to the team and the coach who were able to react in difficult moments. He (Simone Inzaghi, Inter’s coach – ed.) didn’t say much, but he proved he was worthy of the final,” Zanetti added.

Sources: UEFA Champions League, Sky Sport Italia, Football Italia