Image : UEFA Champions League
Before Tuesday night, Bayern Munich had gone 22 matches and four years without losing a Champions League tie at their Allianz Arena. But in the quarter final first leg, in what was a repeat of the 2010 final, it was Internazionale of Milan that prevailed 2-1, thanks to two stunning breakaway goals. Bayern bossed possession, with Michael Olise playing superbly, and Harry Kane struck the post in the first half. But all they had to show for 90 minutes of endeavour was Thomas Muller’s close-range finish on 85 minutes.
Lautaro Martinez, Inter’s captain, started the scoring with a glorious outside-of-the-boot finish in the 38th minute. He had started the move with a header in the centre circle, and when the cross came in Carlos Augusto on the left flank, Marcus Thuram produced a delightful flick into Martinez’s path. Jonas Urbig, deputising for the injured Manuel Neuer, had no chance.
Muller’s contract will not be renewed this summer, and his celebration after he turned in Konrad Laimer’s cross spoke volumes of how much the goal meant to him. But on a night when Bayern badly missed the X-factor that the injured Jamal Musiala provides, Muller’s redemptive strike turned out to be no more than a consolation.
In the 88th minute, Inter broke forward and Nicolo Barella slid through a delightful ball to Augusto, whose cross-shot was deftly tucked past Urbig by the onrushing Davide Frattesi. On as a substitute for Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Frattesi’s shirt-off celebrations earned him a yellow card. But with the clock winding down and Inter repeating their 2010 triumph, no one cared.
The Champions League final is slated to be played in Munich on May 31. But if Bayern are to make it to their own party, they’ll need a performance for the ages in Milan next week.
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