Inter Milan Under the Shadow of an Ancient Champions League Prophecy

Inter Milan's preparations for the UEFA Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain at the Allianz Arena, Munich, on Sunday (1/6/2025) early morning WIB can be said to have reached 100 percent. All injured players have fully recovered.

The team's focus is entirely directed towards the final after failing to prevent Napoli from topping the Serie A standings. However, Inter's preparations are slightly disturbed by an ancient prophecy or myth in the Champions League.

The ancient prophecy states that the city of Munich is not a friendly place for teams that have ever been champions. Throughout its history, every time the Champions League final has been held in Munich, a new champion has always emerged. This fact is certainly less favorable for Inter, which has won the Champions League three times.

The Champions League final has been held four times in Munich. The first club to initiate this myth or ancient prophecy was Nottingham Forest when they became champions in 1979 after defeating Malmo. Olympique Marseille continued this myth by toppling AC Milan in Munich in 1993.

Another new champion team that experienced the Munich myth is Borussia Dortmund, which defeated Juventus in the final in 1997. The match ultimately reinforced the myth when Chelsea won their first Champions League title in history by defeating Bayern Munich.

Chelsea's victory was beyond prediction considering that Munich was a feared team at that time and was playing the final at home.

With the existence of that ancient prophecy or myth, PSG has become more favored to win the final. Until now, PSG has not yet won the Champions League.

In addition, there is a long-standing belief deeply rooted in the Champions League that a team must first experience the bitterness of failure in the final before tasting the sweetness of victory. PSG has endured suffering when they lost to Bayern Munich in the 2020 final.

"There is a lot of confidence in our team. In our philosophy and in the game plan that we will implement tomorrow. Everything we have gone through this season, all the matches we have played, all the difficulties we have faced have prepared us for this opportunity, allowing us to approach this match with confidence," said PSG captain, Marquinhos, Saturday (31/5/2025).

Despite being favored, PSG Coach Luis Enrique is wary of Inter, which he believes is different from most other major European teams. Under the guidance of Simone Inzaghi, Inter has transformed into a very fluid team. Although they are accustomed to a 3-5-2 formation throughout the season, they can easily alter their formation as needed.

In recent weeks, Inzaghi has made several tactical changes by shifting the formation from 3-5-2 to 3-4-2-1. In this new formation, Nicola Zalewski has been given a free role behind the striker. This scheme has been successful, evidenced by victories over Torino and Como. It is highly likely that Inzaghi will implement this change again to surprise PSG.

"Inter is somewhat different from many other teams, as they have two pure strikers in the front line like Marcus Thuram and Lautaro Martinez," said Enrique.

"Our goal, as always, is to prepare for the match in the best possible way so that we can become a better team. To achieve that, we must dominate the ball; there is no other way to accomplish it," Enrique continued.

Although less favored, in the final match Inter can at least put up a tough fight with their secret weapon, namely the execution of set pieces or dead balls. This season Inter scored 32.9 percent of their goals in the Italian League from dead ball schemes.

In the Champions League, four of Inter's last nine goals have come from corners, including when they eliminated Barcelona in the semi-finals.

The ability to capitalize on set pieces allows Inter to frequently score goals in critical moments. This is also what enables the "Nerazzurri" to repeatedly defy predictions, including those from the Opta supercomputer, which is known for its accuracy in forecasting opportunities.

The most phenomenal example is when they eliminated Barca. After a 3-3 draw in the first leg of the semifinal, the Opta supercomputer predicted that Inter had only a 44 percent chance of advancing to the final. However, Inter overturned the prediction by winning 7-6 in extra time.

"We have improved as a team, facing strong opponents in a very challenging atmosphere. Defeating teams with long unbeaten records. Inter has earned respect throughout the competition, working hard, keeping our heads down, and focusing on ourselves. Now we have the opportunity to bring home this trophy after such a long time and desire a perfect performance," said Inter's captain, Lautaro Martinez, as quoted by Football Italia.

Lautaro is striving to free his team from feelings of inferiority due to the ancient predictions of the Champions League. What he says can reignite the spirit of his teammates. After all, the final outcome is not determined by predictions, but rather by the hard work of the team on the field.