UCL: No home ground final for Bayern, Inter advance to the semi-final

Instead of using his strongest assets—his team's quality and readiness—to try to settle the question of reaching the semifinals from the very start of the match, Simone Inzaghi opted for a strict defensive approach to protect the advantage from the first leg against Bayern, which nearly cost him dearly in the return leg. However, after an hour of inexplicable play and an even worse tactical strategy, Inter finally played as expected, scoring two quick goals from corners to secure a 2-2 draw (0-0 at halftime) and a showdown with Barcelona.

Bayern took the lead in the 52nd minute through Harry Kane after an assist from Leon Goretzka, but they were later kept alive by Eric Dier. The English defender first made a phenomenal sliding tackle to prevent a goal from Matteo Darmian with the score at 1-1, and then in the 76th minute, he equalized to make it 2-2 with a header from an impossible angle. After suddenly coming back to life, Vincent Kompany’s team went all in to try and force extra time. The Belgian coach brought on Serge Gnabry and Raphaël Guerreiro first, then Aleksandar Pavlović and Kingsley Coman. During a full-on siege of Inter’s goal, the home side nearly shot themselves in the foot in the second minute of stoppage time, but a communication error between Yann Sommer and Inter’s defense wasn’t capitalized on by Harry Kane, who sent the ball over an empty net. In the end, the Swiss goalkeeper shone by saving a header from Thomas Müller from the edge of the six-yard box in the fifth minute of added time.

Ultimately, Kompany’s side paid the price for an injury-depleted defense that simply wasn’t up to the standard required for the latter stages of elite competition or the fight for a place in the final. Bayern defended terribly on both corners from which they conceded. In the 58th minute, after a Federico Dimarco set piece, they allowed the ball to drop in the middle of the six-yard box, where Lautaro Martínez reacted quickly and smashed it into the net ahead of Joshua Kimmich. The visiting defensive midfielder reacted too slowly and completely missed the play, allowing the Argentine to ignite the rain-soaked crowd. Bayern’s defenders also failed again three minutes later, when Hakan Çalhanoğlu delivered a perfect cross from the opposite side and Benjamin Pavard slammed the ball into the net.

Inter played the first half in a disciplined formation behind the ball, but it was clear that continuing this way in the second half could be costly. The home side seemed to try to change that after the break, especially Marcus Thuram, who managed to get away from his markers but consistently fumbled just before entering the final phase of attack. Kane’s goal was a punishment for Inter’s first-half tactics, but the key was how they responded. They opened up immediately, quickly equalized, and then even more swiftly scored the second goal. However, once again, Inter gradually started retreating toward their own penalty area. Bayern regained control of the ball, which relieved pressure on their defense, and then launched attacks with a large number of players. One such situation led to the second equalizer, and similar pressure continued into the dramatic closing minutes, where luck favored the home team. After all that was seen, the team that advanced to the semifinals was the one that was currently more complete, higher in quality, and better prepared. Still, Inter showed several shortcomings in preparing for this match, which cannot be repeated against an opponent like Barcelona.

UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE - QUARTER-FINALS

Second leg

Tuesday

Aston Villa - PSG 3-2

/Tielemans 34, McGinn 55, Konsa 58 - Hakimi 11, Mendes 28/

PSG win 5-4 on aggregate

Dortmund - Barcelona 3-1

/Guirassy 11 pen, 49, 76 - Bensebaini 54 og/

Barcelona win 5-3 on aggregate

Wednesday

Inter - Bayern 2-2

/Martinez 58, Pavard 61 - Kane 52, Dier 76/

Inter win 4-3 on aggregate

Real Madrid - Arsenal 1-2

/Vinicius 67 - Saka 65, Martinelli 90+3/

Arsenal Win 5-1 on aggregate