Inter Milan and Paris Saint-Germain clash in the Champions League final on Saturday, with the French side hoping to win the first-ever title while the Italians are looking to win their fourth.
An experienced Inter will face a PSG team that is making their second final since the transformative Qatari takeover of the club in 2011, which will take place at Bayern Munich’s 75, 000-capacity Allianz Arena at 9:00 pm (15:00 GMT).
Whoever wins will become the champions of Real Madrid, and the excitement is high once more in Paris.
More than 5, 000 police officers will be stationed throughout the city to prevent trouble and watch 40, 000 people watch on large screens at PSG’s Parc des Princes.
A contest between one of the continent’s old guard and one of the state-owned modern superclubs will be the venue for a mouthwatering clash of opposing styles and ideas of how to build a team.
PSG has never won the Champions League, despite massive expenditures, with their closest match-winning goal coming in 2020.
Despite having Kylian Mbappe and Neymar up front, they lost to Bayern in Lisbon during the pandemic, behind closed doors.
They failed to win the trophy until Lionel Messi’s arrival in 2021, and Mbappe followed them out of the exit door with a brilliant run to Munich.
“Do something historic”
The club’s captain Marquinhos said on Friday, “We have had great times and difficult times, but we have a glorious opportunity to do something remarkable and historic for this club.”
An exciting young Parisian side has recently blown Europe by storm under the direction of Luis Enrique, whose comeback victory in January against 2023 champions Manchester City serves as the catalyst.
In order to reach the final, PSG have since defeated three more Premier League teams, including Arsenal, Liverpool, Aston Villa, and PSG, and have since doubled their French league and cup winnings.
With 33 goals, Ousmane Dembele has been their star player, but Gianluigi Donnarumma and former Inter full-back Achraf Hakimi and Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma have also excelled.
Luis Enrique, who is aiming to win his second Champions League after ten years of dominating Barcelona, said, “My main motivation is to make history for Paris and give the club and the city something to celebrate.”
With a victory for PSG, PSG would become only the second French team to win the championship, surpassing Marseille in 1993 when they defeated Inter’s city rivals AC Milan at the old Olympic Stadium in Munich.
Italian knowledge
When Jose Mourinho’s side defeated Bayern in 2010, Inter were the last Italian champions. In the 1960s, they also won it twice in a row.
When the Nerazzurri reached the championship match two years ago and lost to City, coach Simone Inzaghi was already in charge.
Eight of the Istanbul team’s original starting lineup could start over here, and a veteran line-up should feature three players over the age of 36.
Inzaghi’s team defeated Barcelona in a dramatic tie in the final four, while Bayern advanced to the quarter-finals.
Nicolo Barella, a midfielder, said, “We produced a top-class performance last time against Manchester City, but we didn’t win. This time, we hope to be a little more switched on.”
The team just lost to Napoli for the Serie A title, but “we will try to bring home the trophy, that is the dream for all of us,” Barella, whose side, according to Barella, has just finished third behind them in terms of points.
Lautaro Martinez, the competition’s skipper, said, “We have earned respect.”
“We have worked very hard to get here, and now we have a chance to accomplish this goal that Inter have been pursuing for 15 years.”
It is, unsurprisingly, the teams’ first competitive game.
Whoever wins will receive prizes worth more than 100 million euros ($113.35 million) from UEFA.
Back in Paris fanzones have been set up at three locations besides PSG’s stadium as supporters descend into the German city.
Following PSG’s last-four victory against Arsenal, there was a high level of violence, and a leading supporters’ group called for any fan celebrations on Saturday to be avoided.
The Paris Ultras Collective (CUP) urged people to “maintain pride and act in anexemplary way, regardless of whether the outcome is an explosion of joy or a lesson learned.”
Source: Channels TV
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