Chapter 176: Hot derby
The first leg of the Champions League semi-finals kicked off at the San Siro Stadium. To ensure the safety of the match and avoid a repeat of last year's fireworks incident, fans of both AC Milan and Inter Milan were prohibited from bringing fireworks into the stadium, which caused dissatisfaction among a small group of fans.
The match started with an exceptionally intense atmosphere on the field. Both sides exerted their full strength but struggled to convert opportunities into goals. Inter Milan's best chance came in the 29th minute.
After a combination play between Wang Feng and Ribéry on the right flank, Wang Feng dribbled into the penalty area, attracting most of the defensive attention before passing horizontally to Di Biagio at the far post.
Facing an almost empty goal, Di Biagio unexpectedly hesitated, causing the ball to roll out of bounds from the outside of the goal post, accompanied by sighs of disappointment as he regretfully grabbed his hair in frustration.
AC Milan also created good opportunities. In the 49th minute of the second half, Shevchenko played a through ball in the top of the penalty area, which deflected off Maldini and bounced to the edge of the penalty area. Ruiz Costa, under tight marking from Zambrotta, managed to control the ball and pass it back to Gattuso.
Gattuso then attempted to pass the ball diagonally to the right side of the penalty area, successfully penetrating Inter Milan's defense this time. Inzaghi received the ball at the five-meter position in front of the goal and took a furious shot, but astonishingly missed the close-range shot!
Ultimately, the match ended in a 0-0 draw. Inter Milan's proud attack failed to produce results, Wang Feng was restricted, and the performance of other players was also subpar.
However, their fragile defense did not concede a goal either. AC Milan's forward line was equally poor in form, with Shevchenko having few shots throughout the game, and Inzaghi missing several good chances.
In the end, both sides were too exhausted. Their schedules were almost identical, and both teams were striving for victory to compete for the league title.
When the referee blew the final whistle, despite the lack of goals, the match was still exciting, and the entire San Siro Stadium erupted in warm applause.
Wang Feng breathed a sigh of relief and walked towards a disheartened Di Biagio. "It's okay, a draw is not a bad result," he said. Di Biagio smiled bitterly and replied, "If I had capitalized on that empty goal opportunity, things might have been different."
"If Inzaghi had managed to kick a few shots on target, we would have been at a disadvantage, wouldn't we?" Wang Feng joked. "Everything has happened already, all we can do is play well in the next match."
Zanetti approached and said, "Wang is right, a draw is not a bad result. Remember, this match was at our home stadium, and AC Milan didn't score."
"As long as we score one goal in the next leg, even if it's a draw, we can advance on away goals."
Coach Cooper also praised everyone in the post-match summary: "Well done, everyone. We didn't concede a goal and have gained a slight advantage. Let's aim to score an early goal in the next match, then AC Milan will be in a difficult situation."
His affirmation relieved the players. When the strengths are evenly matched, the players' mentality becomes one of the crucial factors affecting the result. Both coaching staff are currently doing their best to reassure the players, hoping they will face the upcoming matches with a positive mindset.
On May 10th, in the 32nd round of Serie A, Inter Milan challenged Parma away.
Inter Milan still fielded their strongest lineup. In the 25th minute of the match, Di Biagio sent a clever pass, Wang Feng dribbled into the penalty area, faked a shot to shake off Ferrari, and scored with a left-footed shot to open the scoring for the away team.
But shortly after the start of the second half, Adriano assisted Gilardino to equalize for Parma. Their attacking power remained strong. If not for their poor defense, Parma wouldn't have been only ranked fifth in the league standings.
As the match approached its end, Wang Feng orchestrated another attack. He successfully found Vieira with a cross from the right, but Vieira's header was saved by Frey. Ribéry followed up with a rebound goal.
2-1! Inter Milan defeated their opponents!
When Wang Feng returned to the dressing room, he found his teammates smiling. He hurriedly inquired about the reason, and Materazzi replied, "Wang, great news! In the just-concluded match, AC Milan unexpectedly lost 0-1 to Brescia away."
"With two rounds left, we are now leading AC Milan by 4 points. As long as we win against Modena in the next round, we can defend our league title one round early!"
Wang Feng was delighted. He didn't expect AC Milan to succumb to the pressure. The defense of the defending champions was within reach!
But he soon became worried again because he knew that AC Milan would give it their all in the next Champions League match!
On May 14th, still at the San Siro Stadium, the Milan Derby continued.
AC Milan launched a full-scale attack from the beginning. They used high-pressing tactics to pressurize the opponents. In the 9th minute, Ruí Costa's cross from the flank was picked up by Shevchenko, who then chipped the ball behind the defenders for Inzaghi to score.
The ball flew past Toldo, and at the crucial moment, Materazzi rushed forward and raised his right foot high to deflect the ball over the crossbar, but he couldn't stop himself and crashed into the goal post.
Materazzi felt a sharp pain in his foot and rolled on the ground in agony. After a preliminary examination by the team doctor, he regretfully shook his head and signaled for a substitution.
Inter Milan lost another key player in the defense! Cooper had no choice but to replace Materazzi with Pasqualè and also let Gamara replace Dalmat. Wang Feng moved to the attacking midfielder position, and the formation changed to 5-4-1.
Cooper was really worried about the defense! Using more players to stack the defense, he couldn't care less about making adjustments so early in the game. It was better than falling behind and becoming passive.
Wang Feng's range of activity was already wide, so there wasn't much difference between playing as a forward and an attacking midfielder. He just moved closer to the midfield, facing more defensive pressure.
As the match resumed, under AC Milan's fierce attack, Inter Milan's defense was indeed in danger. Without Materazzi's aerial presence, they frequently used high crosses into the penalty area, with Shevchenko and Inzaghi attempting headers.
Fortunately, both of them were not in their best form, always missing the target by a small margin, so both sides maintained a 0-0 draw until halftime.
After the break, AC Milan continued to dominate possession, with their ball possession rate reaching 70% at one point. However, their inability to score increasingly frustrated the players, and the actions on the field became more aggressive.
In the 81st minute, Sidorov made a fierce tackle on Di Biagio in the midfield, leading to a dispute that almost sparked a conflict. Fortunately, the referee intervened in time, separated everyone, and showed Sidorov a yellow card.
Inter Milan won a free kick in the midfield. Dalmat lofted the ball near the top of the penalty area, Di Biagio successfully controlled the ball and then dribbled to the flank, pulling away the defense in the penalty area.
After faking out Maldini with a feint, he made his way to the left side, suddenly turned around and crossed, and Wang Feng at the far post shot with his left foot while in mid-air, piercing through Dida's hands and into the net!
Soon, the match ended, and Inter Milan advanced to the Champions League final with an aggregate score of 1-0 against AC Milan.
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