The Champions League semifinals are set. Milan will face Inter in a two leg Derby della Madonnina semifinal next month. For many, this matchup conjures up epic images of a fiery confrontation that are disturbingly celebrated. Those images actually have a very dark history behind them, involving an injury to a player and abandoning of the match as well as sanctions. As far as successes, both teams won the trophy the last time they each made it this far, but both teams are struggling with their league form right now. Additionally, the future of both clubs are on different trajectories, particularly financially. This storied matchup highlights the intersection of the past, present, and future of both clubs.
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| People forget the damage behind the "epic images" in 2005 |
The Past
2002-03 Champions League Semifinals
The first time Milan and Inter met in the semifinals, Milan won the Champions League. The matchup was in May of 2003, and the Milan home match ended in a goalless draw. The following week, they met again, and Shevchenko broke the deadlock in stoppage time of the first half. Inter would equalize with a late goal from Martins, but Milan won the tie by virtue of the away goal rule. Milan went on to face another Italian rival, Juventus, in the final in Manchester, where they won 2-3 on penalties after a scoreless draw.
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| Shevchenko's goal sent Milan to the final, his penalty there won the trophy. |
2004-05 Champions League Quarterfinals
The last time there was a Milan Derby in the Champions League, it was actually in the quarterfinals. Milan were the home team for the first leg once again, and they defeated Inter 2-0 with goals by defender Jap Stam and the legendary Shevchenko. It was the second leg that became notorious. Inter were down a goal from Shevchenko, of course, and they thought they had scored an equalizer, but it was called off. That sent the snakes into a frenzy, and their fans began throwing objects and then flares onto the pitch, one of which hit Milan goalkeeper Dida on the shoulder, who suffered burns from it.
The match was suspended while he received treatment, the fires were put out, and the pitch was cleared. As the players stood around waiting, the "epic" photos were taken, but they did not at all tell the story of what was going on. A player was down, and football was being held hostage by thugs and criminals. The referee tried to restart the match, but he was forced to abandon it when the fans continued to throw things. Milan were awarded a 3-0 win and Inter were given a stadium closure for the following season. Dida, however, was never the same goalkeeper he had been before that.
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| A pitch set on fire, a player injured, and football lost... more despicable than epic. |
2009-10 Winners
The last time Inter played in a Champions League semifinal at all was in 2009-10, when they went on to win their third title, despite making it to nine semifinals. This was the team built from the ashes of Calciopoli, a Serie A scandal in which a network of former Inter directors not only helped Inter avoid their own prosecution, but carefully orchestrated the demise of their biggest rivals. They benefitted from their rivals being relegated or having significant points deductions, and even bought players from their rivals for cheap, as well as assigning themselves one of the league titles in question.
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| Javier Zanetti lifted the 2009-10 trophy for Inter and remains at the club as vice president today |
Their entire identity has been built upon conspiracies and delusions about refereeing, and many of their trophies, including this Champions League trophy, would have never been theirs without their criminal behavior. In fact, just this week, more wiretaps and evidence was revealed further implicating them as being the worst offenders of referee tampering in 2006, but they have still avoided all consequences due to legal loopholes and friends in high places. It was also their victim mentality that instigated the fans who threw flares in the 2005 semifinal match at the San Siro.
2006-07 Winners
The last time Milan played in a semifinal was in the 2006-07 season. Having been punished with a points deduction in the league that season for their part in the Calciopoli scandal, Milan would go on to Athens and face a rematch with Liverpool, who had defeated them in 2005. This time, they would get sweet revenge, and Paolo Maldini lifted the Champions League trophy. Milan have been to the semifinals 14 times, and have won seven Champions League trophies in all, second only to Real Madrid.
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| "After Istanbul, there is always Athens." |
The Present
On the black and blue side of the city, Inter are just two points behind Milan in Serie A, just like they finished last year. They, too, have been dropping points and playing inconsistently. However, despite losing the first Derby 3-2 to Milan in September, Inter won the second league Derby in February 1-0. They also beat Milan 3-0 in the Supercoppa match in January. However, Inzaghi has struggled to control his squad, with multiple fights reported between players throughout the season, including on on Tuesday ahead of their quarterfinal second leg. Inter have to worry about their second leg of the Coppa Italia semifinal against Juventus next week, an extra distraction.
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| I M Always Second: Winning the Scudetto is 'Not For Everyone.' |
The Future
Both Milan and Inter had been working jointly for the past four or five years to build a stadium together. However, Milan recently announced that we would be pursuing our own stadium project. The biggest factor for this split is the uncertain future of the ownership and the poor financial management of Inter. Two years ago, when Inter won the Scudetto, there were a few months when the club could not even pay their own players' wages. Why they were still allowed to compete, let alone win Serie A is a testament to how corrupt the league and the FIGC are.
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| Milan's past, present, and future. |
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| Milan Primavera are playing in their first UEFA Youth League Semifinal. |
This post inspired by the music of The Prodigy's "Firestarter"