Inter Milan was in the running to win three trophies this season, but could end up empty-handed when it faces Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League final tomorrow morning (3am, Malaysian time).
City rivals AC Milan defeated Inter in the Coppa Italia semifinals a month ago, and last week, Napoli claimed the Serie A title by a point.
As such, the Champions League final is Inter’s last chance for silverware, while its opponents, PSG, could claim its own treble after winning the Coupe de France last weekend. It secured the Ligue 1 title in early April with six matches left.
The French outfit has never won the Champions League or the European Cup, as it was previously called, and this would be its second final.
Five years ago, PSG reached the final, only to lose to Bayern Munich. Since Luis Enrique took over the side two years ago, the team has grown in strength.
It started slowly in the new Champions League’s league format, but has been firing on all cylinders during the knockout stages.
In Ousmane Dembele, it has a deadly striker capable of scoring from anywhere on the pitch.
Should Enrique guide PSG to the Champions League title, he will become the seventh manager to win the tournament with two clubs – he also won it with Barcelona in 2015.
Carlo Ancelotti (AC Milan and Real Madrid), Pep Guardiola (Barcelona and Manchester City), Ernst Happel (Feyenoord and Hamburg), Ottmar Hitzfeld (Dortmund and Bayern Munich), Jose Mourinho (Porto and Inter Milan), and Jupp Heynckes (Real Madrid and Bayern Munich) are the only managers to win the trophy with different clubs.
Inter will play in its seventh final, winning the trophy three times – 1964, 1965, and 2010.
Although it came close to glory and could still win European football’s biggest prize, Inter could lose manager Simone Inzaghi after the final.
Inzaghi has been with Inter since 2021, and in that time, has won one Serie A title, two Supercoppa Italiana titles and one Coppa Italia crown.
The Milan club is looking at Bologna manager Vincenzo Italiano as Inzaghi’s replacement.
