legend coach Arrigo Sacchi joked that Inter needed a gun to prevent striker Erling Haaland from exploding in the Champions League final.
In an interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport on June 7, Sacchi was first asked how Inter could block Haaland – the striker scored 52 goals in 52 matches this season. “They’ll need the shotgun,” he replied. “Just kidding. Man City always play with two wingers and Haaland as the center forward, and Kevin de Bruyne is often close to them. Inter has a defense of five, including two full-backs and three central defenders. This means that Inter will often be overwhelmed in the midfield.”
When asked more about why Inter would be overwhelmed in midfield, Sacchi analyzed that two Inter wingers would follow two Man City wingers, while three central defenders would keep an eye on them. to Haland. Therefore, if the Inter midfielder does not come out with De Bruyne or Ilkay Gundogan, Man City will have one or two more people in the middle of the field to continue the dominant ball control game.
“In fact, Simone Inzaghi’s 5-3-2 formation consists of five, not three defenders. Therefore, Inter will lose the elements when deploying the ball or pressing high,” the 77-year-old former coach continued to analyze. .
Sacchi admitted that it was not easy for Inter to find a way to solve this problem, but said that the Italian representative counter-attacked very well and could make Man City not dare to push the squad to press the pitch. He emphasized that no team can guarantee victory, but Inter must have strong motivation, high teamwork and a style of play that upholds the quality of the team as well as the individual.
Sacchi also advised Inter not to die for 90 minutes. “If Inter can organize a good pressing game, Guardiola’s wingers and strikers will not have many opportunities,” he analyzed. “On the other hand, if you let Man City control the ball, Haaland will have a lot of opportunities. Killing for 90 minutes against Man City can be very risky because sooner or later they always find a way to score.”
Inter and Man City are both aiming for a treble when entering the Champions League final at Ataturk Stadium, Istanbul, Turkey on June 10. Inter won the Italian Super Cup, the Italian Cup, and the army under Pep Guardiola won the English Premier League and the FA Cup.
Inter has won the European Cup/Champions League three times, with the last time being the 2009-2010 season with a history of three times under Jose Mourinho. Man City have yet to win the Champions League, with their best performance coming to the final in 2021, where they lost 0-1 to Chelsea. However, Opta statistics said that the chance of winning the Champions League for Man City is up to 74%, nearly three times that of Inter.
