In what will surely go down as one of the greatest Champions League semi-finals in history, Inter Milan secured their place in this year’s final with a breathtaking 4–3 extra-time victory over Barcelona at the San Siro, winning 7–5 on aggregate.
The Italian champions appeared to be cruising when they established 2–0 leads in both legs, but Barcelona, true to their reputation as comeback specialists, refused to surrender without a fight.
The drama reached its peak when Raphinha struck for Barcelona in the 87th minute, seemingly sending the Catalan side through to the final. However, Inter staged a remarkable revival of their own when veteran defender Francesco Acerbi charged into the box to score a dramatic equalizer, forcing the tie into extra time.
The decisive moment came when Davide Frattesi, who had entered as a substitute, repeated his heroics from Inter’s earlier triumph in Munich by scoring what proved to be the winning goal in extra time.
Barcelona’s teenage sensation Lamine Yamal delivered a dazzling performance and came agonizingly close to saving his team with several late attempts, but Inter goalkeeper Yann Sommer produced a series of crucial saves to preserve the Nerazzurri’s advantage.
Despite Barcelona recording a higher expected goals tally (2.74 to Inter’s 2.28), it was Inter who prevailed where it mattered—on the scoreboard.
Inter now await either Arsenal or Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League final, while Barcelona must quickly regroup before facing bitter rivals Real Madrid in El Clásico this weekend. Inter return to Serie A action against Torino on Sunday as they continue their title defense.
