Inter Milan beat AC Milan 2-0 away in the first leg of the Champions League semifinal at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, after a fantastic first half where MOTM Edin Dzeko turned back the years, something which is reflected in the SempreInter.com Inter Milan player ratings.

Ratings by Thomas Millar.

The Nerazzurri started the game absolutely brilliantly, perfectly prepared for everything AC Milan were going to throw at them.

Already in the 8th minute Edin Dzeko latched on to a Hakan Calhanoglu corner to make it 1-0 with a lovely volley.

Some three minutes later, Henrikh Mkhitaryan doubled Inter’s lead after some beautiful positional interchanges with Nicolo Barella, burying a Federico Dimarco pass.

After that the Nerazzurri dominated completely with Hakan Calhanoglu hitting the woodwork, Henrikh Mkhitaryan having a good chance saved by Mike Maignan as well as Lautaro Martinez being correctly denied a penalty.

In the second half, AC Milan came out much better pressing more intensely and cohesively but not really creating anything dangerous aside from Sandro Tonali hitting outside of the post.

The Nerazzurri looked solid defensively but did still create a couple of good chances which Edin Dzeko unfortunately failed to capitalize on when Alessandro Bastoni made an impressive run from deep.

No more goals and the game ended 2-0 and Simone Inzaghi’s Inter Milan have one foot in the Champions League final.

The return leg will be played on Tuesday the 16th of May at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, with kick-off scheduled for 21.00 CET.

Inter Milan Player Ratings Vs AC Milan – Edin Dzeko MOTM

 

André Onana – 7: Was presented with no real danger throughout the match. 7 clean sheets in Europe this season, incredible.

Matteo Darmian – 6,5: Quality reading of the game and the world of football was able to see Mr. Reliable on the biggest stage today.

Francesco Acerbi – 6,5: Solid as always from the veteran, let nothing past him and made crucial tackles when called into action. Timeless.

Alessandro Bastoni – 7,5: Another incredible European match. Fantastic on defence and made an amazing run, nearly setting up a third goal.

Denzel Dumfries – 6,5: A hard-fought battle with Theo all night. Got caught in defence sometimes but generally made up for any errors.

Nicolo Barella – 7: Everywhere in midfield tonight, you could tell he was up for it today. On attack, in defence, the Italian made his presence known.

Hakan Calhanoglu – 7: A perfect set-piece to assist Dzeko in the opening goal and hit the post minutes later. Very strong performance against his ex-team.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan – 7,5: A darting run into a seemingly empty opposing box to double Inter’s lead early, and continued to show his quality throughout.

Federico Dimarco – 7: Assisted Mkhitaryan perfectly, bringing his UCL assist tally to 5 this season, just one shy of the competition’s top assistman at 6.

Lautaro Martinez (C) – 6,5: Pressed the opposition defence as he always does and made himself a nuisance to the defenders. Created several chances.

Edin Dzeko – 8 (MOTM): Rolled back the years today, scoring a brilliant volley off a corner and continued to impress, dribbling and nearly scoring a brace.

Substitutes

 

Marcelo Brozovic – 6,5: Replaced Henrikh Mkhitaryan in the 62′ minute and immediately brought a sense of calmness to the midfield with his quality.

Romelu Lukaku – 6,5: Brought on in the 62′ for Edin Dzeko. Today his hold-up game was immense, and dribbled through several players causing problems.

Stefan de Vrij – 6: Substituted on in the 70′ minute for Federico Dimarco and brought defensive stability. Made an important tackle near the end.

Roberto Gagliardini – 5: Entered in the 78′ for Hakan Calhanoglu and had no real impact, until he failed to convert a one-on-one chance at the end of the match.

Joaquin Correa – 5,5: Came on in the 78′ for compatriot Lautaro Martinez. Was unable to make an impact on the match, registering only nine touches.

Manager

 

Simone Inzaghi – 7: Blew away a shell-shocked Milan team early in the first half. Concentration slipped in the second half, but mostly made the correct subs.

Referee

 

Jesus Gil Manzano – 5: Was right to have Var intervene on a potential Inter penalty, but later failed to call a blatant punch on Bastoni in the opposing box.

Team Performance

 

Inter – 7: An incredible performance throughout, scoring early goals and staying defensively solid in the second half to retain a 2-goal cushion.

Do you agree or disagree with Sempreinter.com’s Inter Milan player ratings? Who was your Inter Milan Man of the match? And who was the Nerazzurri’s worst performer on the day?

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