Barcelona-Inter, Inzaghi: "We played a great game. There's a bit of regret"

Barcelona (Spain), 30 April 2025 – The match between Barcelona and Inter at Montjuic (Camp Nou is unavailable due to renovation work) ends in a thrilling 3-3 draw. A draw that keeps the qualification discussion open until the return semi-final scheduled for six days at San Siro and which leaves a bit of regret for Inter, who started very strongly, taking a 2-0 lead thanks to an excellent first half of the match, but on two occasions saw themselves caught up by the Catalans. And to say that the evening seemed to have started under the best auspices for Inzaghi's men, who in extremis recovered two key elements such as Dumfries and Thuram. Those who started the fireworks display of the evening: The Frenchman's splendid backheel, which ended up in the net on an assist from Dumfries after less than a minute, immediately opened the game, putting it on the right track for the Nerazzurri who doubled their lead in the 21st minute thanks to the Dutchman's half-bicycle kick on the developments of a corner kick. Goals that highlighted the defensive fragilities of the Catalans who however were able to react like a great team thanks above all to the star Yamal, who in the moment of greatest difficulty took the team on his shoulders, giving a splendid trajectory to the ball for 24-2 in the 1th minute, which went in after hitting the post. A goal that suddenly overturned the inertia of the match. Yamal himself, just 2' later, in fact, chipped the crossbar, almost grazing an equaliser that then arrived in the 38th minute when Ferran Torres headed the ball in from a pass by Raphina. A cold shower for the Nerazzurri who lost Lautaro Martinez to a problem with his left thigh flexor at the end of the half, but they still had the strength to react and restart at the start of the second half with great determination, putting their heads back in front with Dumfries' winning header - following a corner - in the 63rd minute. A draw that lasted just 2 minutes, however, because in the 65th minute Raphina unleashed a missile for the 3-3 that hit the crossbar and then Sommer's back.. Despite being caught up again, Inter still reacted with personality, even reaching 4-3 with Mkhitaryan (goal disallowed for offside) and resisting the final assault of Barça who hit the crossbar again with Yamal 3' from the end. A draw that leaves a mix of positivity, hope and bitterness in Inter, as explained by the coach Simone Inzaghi in the post-match interview with Amazon Prime Video: “There is great satisfaction. We played a great match against the strongest team in the world, starting with a double lead and getting back on top with a goal that was later disallowed and that I still don’t understand. These episodes can make the difference but it doesn’t change how I feel about these guys who were fantastic. On the other hand, we saw a player like Yamal who created huge problems for us. We haven’t seen players like that for years. It wasn’t enough to double or triple him”. The only sour note is the injury that knocked out Lautaro Martinez at the end of the first half: “He had a little problem, unfortunately. He was coming off eight games in a row. We were without Thuram for a long time in important games and Taremi was also coming off an injury. With so many games in a row there is this risk. I hope not to lose him for long but there is this risk”.