Inter Milan defeated AC Milan 2-0 in a thrilling Milan derby at San Siro to improve their chances of reaching the UEFA Champions League final.
The two city rivals met at their joint home ground for their first leg of the UEFA Champions League semi-final round. In front of a noisy 80,000 spectators, Edin Dzeko’s goal in the eighth minute gave Inter the ideal start to a match that had been eagerly anticipated for weeks in Italy.
The goal silenced the AC Milan fans, who outnumbered the Inter fans as they were the official home team for the game.
Three minutes later, Henrikh Mkhitaryan stunned the guests once more by overcoming Mike Maignan with a shot after taking advantage of an assist from Federico Dimarco.
Inter nearly added a third goal when Hakan Calhanoglu hit the woodwork.
Afterward, Inter had a penalty call from referee Jesus Gil Manzano but he overturned it after the VAR confirmed that Lautaro Martinez had dived, giving AC Milan some hope.
To preserve their two-goal lead, Inter slowed down in the second half and then, AC Milan nearly had a chance to fight back when Sandro Tonali’s drive from the edge of the box hit the post.
At the end of the night, Inter Milan ran away with a 2-0 victory. They will meet at the same venue at 8 PM WAT on Tuesday, May 16 for the second leg. Inter Need just a draw to book themselves a place in the final where they will face either Manchester City or Real Madrid on June 10.
