AC Milan Ruins Inter's Treble Dreams

MILAN, THURSDAY — The Derby Della Madonnina once again ended in an anticlimax for Inter Milan. Despite a more dominant performance, Inter was unable to withstand AC Milan, who played more efficiently in the second leg of the Coppa Italia semifinal at the Giuseppe Meazza Stadium, Thursday (24/4/2025) early morning WIB. Milan won three goals to none, thus leading 4-1 on aggregate. This victory also dashed Inter's hopes of a treble win.

There is a peculiar phenomenon overshadowing Inter this season. The team, coached by Simone Inzaghi, is having a remarkable season, reaching the semifinals of the UEFA Champions League and becoming a strong candidate for the Serie A title.

However, behind that brilliance, Inter has never been able to defeat Milan, who is currently struggling. In five encounters against Inter this season, Milan has secured three victories and two draws.

The concern of stumbling against Milan has proven to be a reality. Milan, under pressure, performed more efficiently and scored three goals through the actions of Luka Jovic (two goals) and Tijjani Reijnders. In the first meeting, both teams played to a 1-1 draw.

This victory revives Milan's hopes of ending the season with at least one trophy. Unlike Inter, Milan's season is at risk of total failure after being eliminated from the Champions League and falling to ninth place. The only remaining hope for Milan to secure a trophy lies in the Coppa Italia. However, the last hope of winning a trophy feels increasingly diminished as Milan must face a consistently performing Inter.

Who would have thought that Milan could turn that glimmer of hope into a closer reality? Thanks to an important victory over Inter, Milan has the opportunity to win the Coppa Italia while also securing a ticket to compete in the Europa League next season. In the final, Milan will face the winner of the other semifinal match between Empoli and Bologna.

For Inter, this defeat is a shame that they cannot conceal. Milan, no matter how inconsistent they have been this season, has managed to perform consistently every time they face Inter. No matter how sophisticated the tactics employed by Simone Inzaghi, they have never been able to dismantle the strategy crafted by Milan's Coach Sergio Conceicao.

In Milan's hands, Inter's dream of achieving a treble winner or winning three trophies in a single season was instantly shattered. Inter's chances of winning a trophy now remain only in the Champions League and Serie A. Inter's failure to advance to the Coppa Italia final means that only two teams in Europe still have the opportunity to achieve a treble, namely Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona.

Milan's coach, Sergio Conceicao, instructed his players not to engage in an open game with Inter. The Milan players maintained a medium defensive line. When Inter was attempting to build an attack from the back, the trio of Milan forwards, consisting of Christian Pulisic, Jovic, and Rafael Leao, did not press immediately but instead waited for the Inter players to enter their defensive area first.

After the ball entered Milan's playing area, they began to press Inter's players. This tactic was not sufficiently effective in dampening Inter's aggressiveness, which featured resilient midfielders. One of the two wing-backs of Milan, who played in a 3-4-3 formation, also did not transition quickly when faced with an attack. As a result, Lautaro Martinez and Mehdi Taremi frequently posed a threat to Milan's defense, aided by Matteo Darmian and Federico Dimarco, who also advanced to support the attack.

In the first half, Inter recorded seven shots, but only one was on target. The attacking statistics felt lackluster considering Inter's dominance in ball possession, which reached 58 percent. Meanwhile, Milan, who were under more pressure, also managed to take one shot on target, which was converted into a goal by Jovic in the 36th minute.

Jovic once again became a nightmare for Inter's defense with his second goal in the 50th minute. The Serbian national team player touched the ball only 32 times throughout the match, the fewest among Milan's forwards, but his movement was highly effective and often went unnoticed by Inter's defenders.

Jovic has become something of an oasis as two of Milan's wingers, Leao and Pulisic, have underperformed. Leao even became the player with the most duels lost (13 times) in this match. In fact, Leao is considered a player with above-average speed and dribbling skills. While Leao struggled, Jovic stepped up to save Milan with his keen ability to read spaces.

Reijnders sealed Milan's victory with his goal five minutes before the end of regular time. After Reijnders' goal, the Inter players had lost all motivation to close the gap. Until the match concluded, the score remained 3-0 in favor of Milan.

"I am very confident (in winning the Coppa Italia). We are struggling in Serie A, this is the best way to compete in Europe next season. If we play like we did today, I am sure we will be champions," said Reijnders. (REUTERS)