Barcelona draws with Inter Milan in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final
There were still people looking for their seats at the Estadio Olimpico Lluis Companys in Montjuic, on the outskirts of Barcelona, and there were already signs of concern on their faces. This is because Inter scored in the second attack, without Barcelona being able to touch the ball: a deep attack by the Frenchman who immediately passed to Dumfries to cross, Koundé cleared the ball which went back to the Dutch full-back. This time the Dumfries centre was met by Marcus Thuram’s backheel for a stunning goal after 33 seconds. Iñigo Martinez slipped and failed to cut out Dumfries’ centre. His father, Liliam Thuram, who played two seasons at Barcelona, liked what he saw from the stands.
Inter, who had suffered three consecutive defeats, one of them in the Coppa Italia semi-final against Sergio Conceição’s Milan, had found a way to overcome the very high defensive line of Hansi Flick’s team.
Versatility, mobility and individual quality were Barcelona’s weapons to break down the 3-5-2 formation set up by coach Simone Inzaghi. The Blaugrana team arrived at the match with high morale, having won the Spanish Cup in extra time against arch-rivals Real Madrid.
Much of the Barça’s hope was in Lamine Yamal, on the day he completed 100 games in the Barcelona starting shirt. It’s good to remember that he’s only 17 years old. Yes, 17 years old. The first signs of danger came from the teenager’s feet, such as the passes to Ferran Torres in the fourth, fifth and 12th minutes. In the last one, the Spanish striker kicked badly, in the area.
Ferrán, known as El Tiburón [the shark], was stubborn in not ‘biting’ when faced with opportunities. At 19, after a set piece, he controlled the ball with his chest and fired a crooked shot wide, with Yan Sommer beaten.
Inter responded with… 2-0. After a corner from Dimarco, Acerbi headed the ball to Dumfries who shot, acrobatically, for a great goal, in the 21st minute.
Alarm bells were ringing in Catalonia, but Lamine Yamal managed to calm everyone down three minutes later: he picked up the ball on the right, got past Dimarco and Mikhitaryan with ease and fired a well-placed shot for a great goal. Yam Sommer watched. Inspired, Yamal tried to repeat the feat the following minute: he sat down Dimarco, shot against Sommer’s gloves, who deflected it onto the post. This was after scaring the Catalans during the warm-up, when he felt muscle pain and needed to be treated.
The Catalan pressure was enormous, leaving Inter unable to play out. Yan Sommer would have to apply himself to prevent Yamal’s goal at 34 and Dani Olmo’s at 36.
But the Blaugrana pressure would finally be transformed into a goal in the 36th minute, by Ferrán Torres. A top-quality pass from Pedri to the far post where Raphinha rose to head the ball into the six-yard box for El Tiburón to tap in to make it 2-2 in the 36th minute.
Before the break, two setbacks for both teams: Koundé, with muscular problems, gave his place to Eric Garcia, Lautaro also left for the same reasons, with Taremi (ex-FC Porto) coming on for the Nerazzurri.
In the second half, it was Inter who started better again, but this time without a reaction from Barcelona. With Carlos Augusto replacing Acerbi, Inter were managing to get out on the flanks, with Barcelona having difficulty stopping the counterattacks. At 62, Dumfries asked for a penalty in a play involving Ronaldo Araújo (who came on at half-time in place of Gerard Martin, with Iñigo Martinez moving to left-back), and, in the sequence of the play, scored twice: a corner at the far post and the Dutchman heading the ball in to make it 3-2.
However, just like when they made it 2-0, the Italians’ celebration was short-lived because: in the 65th minute, from a studied corner, Olmo headed into the area for a first-time shot by Raphinha, Yan Sommer deflected it onto the crossbar, the ball hit his back and went in. A great save turned into a goal and… 3-3 on the scoreboard.
Whatever Simone Inzaghi told his players, it was working: Inter were able to break out more easily and Barcelona were finding no way to stop the breakouts. In the 78th minute, the Italians celebrated the 4-3, with a ball from Dumfries at the far post, finished by Mikhitaryan after Szczesny hesitated, but the goal was disallowed by VAR for offside.
Barcelona responded, mostly through Lamine Yamal. In the 85th minute, the wing prodigy tried to cross, but the ball hit the bar, with Sommer already beaten. It would have been a great goal, even if it had been unintentional.
