Milan v Internazionale Live Commentary & Result, 10/05/2023, UEFA Champions League

That's all from us. Goodbye!

Looking ahead to that all-important second leg, Milan really need Leao back and fit. The winger picked up a knock in Milan's last outing against Lazio and his absence in attack against Inter was clear to see. They were extremely lacklustre going forward and were desperate for an injection of pace and quality to trouble Inter, which is exactly what Leao gives them. With him back, they have every chance, but it's going to be a huge test against the high-flying Nerazzurri.

What a result for Inter in the first leg of this blockbuster Champions League semi-final. First-half goals from Dzeko and Mkhitaryan give Inzaghi’s side a strong lead going into the return leg back at San Siro next week, where they will enjoy the home advantage in addition to their two-goal cushion. Milan were miles off the pace but are fortunate to escape this clash only two goals behind on aggregate. It's not over yet, but they have a lot of work to do if they want to progress to their first Champions League final since 2007.

90' + 5' FULL-TIME: MILAN 0-2 INTER

90' + 3' Gagliardini goes down clutching his head and the referee briefly pauses the game.

90' + 2' POBEGA STRIKES STRAIGHT AT ONANA! The ball drops to the substitute on the edge of the box and he produces a fierce, low strike which is on target, but straight into the hands of Onana.

90' There will be four minutes of added time at the end of the second half.

88' Milan are desperately trying to get a goal back to help them out in the return leg but Inter have been clever and resilient in defence.

85' Hernandez sends the free-kick high and wide to the left with a really disappointing effort.

84' Milan have a free-kick in a great position. Hernandez is fouled by Gagliardini roughly 30 yards from Onana's goal.

T. Pobega

Brahim Díaz

82' Pobega also comes on and replaces Diaz.

P. Kalulu

D. Calabria

82' Milan make a double change. Kalulu on for Calabria.

82' Messias cuts inside from the right and shoots with his left foot but Onana saves comfortably despite a deflection off Darmian.

80' Milan have still not had a shot on target yet. They've had 10 attempts.

J. Correa

Lautaro Martínez

78' The captain, Martinez, is brought off and Correa comes on. Barella takes the armband.

R. Gagliardini

H. Çalhanoğlu

78' Gagliardini replaces Calhanoglu.

76' Check over. The VAR has cleared Krunic of any wrongdoing. He could have been in trouble and cost his team, it was very silly.

75' There seems to be a VAR check ongoing for a red card and a penalty after Krunic gave Bastoni a dig in the ribs during an Inter corner.

75' THIAW BLOCKS DARMIAN'S SHOT! Darmian finds some space in a congested Milan penalty area and pulls the trigger but Thiaw denies him at point-blank range.

74' Hernandez whips a cross towards Giroud in the box but Onana comes off his line to catch it.

73' Three of Origi's four Champions League goals have come at the semi-final stage or later - the other was against Milan in last season's group stage.

S. de Vrij

F. Dimarco

70' It looks like a defensive change for Inter as Dimarco is replaced by De Vrij.

R. Lukaku

E. Džeko

70' Lukaku is introduced and replaces one of the goalscorers, Dzeko.

69' Acerbi tests Maignan from a long way out and stings the palms of the Milan goalkeeper, but doesn't trouble him as he catches the ball comfortably.

66' Inter have kept a clean sheet in six of their 10 matches in European competition this season, while they’ve never previously managed seven in a single campaign in the European Cup/Champions League.

F. Tomori

Yellow Card

64' Tomori is the latest Milan player to be cautioned for a poor challenge.

64' OFF THE POST! Giroud tees up Tonali on the edge of the box and the midfielder's shot crashes off the woodwork! That's the closest Milan have come to a goal.

63' Krunic drives towards goal and is knocked off the ball by Dimarco just outside the box as the referee waves a foul away. Inter then break and Mkhitaryan is brought down by Giroud for a free-kick, which the Milan faithful are most certainly not happy with.

M. Brozović

H. Mkhitaryan

62' Mkhitaryan is replaced by Brozovic.

D. Origi

A. Saelemaekers

59' Origi comes on for Saelemaekers in a double change.

M. Thiaw

S. Kjær

59' Milan make their second change of the match as Thiaw replaces Kjaer.

58' Dzeko feeds the ball to Martinez who is driving into the Milan half before he pokes the ball past Hernandez, but Kjaer shows good pace to beat the forward to the ball and recovers well.

56' Tonali receives the ball on the edge of the box, takes a touch to make a bit of room for a shot and then drags a low effort wide.

56' Inter have won nine of their 10 Champions League matches when going into the break two or more goals ahead (L1), while Milan have never won a match in UEFA's top club competition when two or more goals behind at half-time (D1 L5).

54' HUGE SAVE TO DENY DZEKO! Bastoni runs at the Milan defence and gets to the edge of the box before slipping a simple ball to Dzeko, who is one-on-one with Maignan, but his low shot is saved by the legs of the goalkeeper. The Milan defenders were all over the place, this game is wide open at the moment!

52' MESSIAS WITH A BIG CHANCE! For the first time, Inter's defence is carved open and Messias is presented with an opportunity when he breaks into the box to receive the ball, opens up his body and tries to bend an effort in at the back post, but his shot creeps wide. He had so much time and probably should have done better.

50' DIAZ GOES CLOSE! He drives forward and finds space for a shot just outside the box, takes aim at the bottom-left corner of the goal but doesn't get enough curl on the ball as it fizzes wide.

48' Hernandez floats the ball into the box but Giroud commits a foul on Dumfries at the back post.

47' Milan begin the second half on the front foot and are awarded a free-kick just over 30 yards away from goal.

45' Milan get the action restarted.

Where do Milan go from here? Well, they need to get back into the game, and quickly. Pioli will be delivering one of the most important half-time team talks of his career and his side will want to make the most of their home advantage while they can. They're down, but they're not out. As for Inter, they just need to keep doing what they've been doing all game - solid at the back and devastating in attack.

A dream start for Inter, but a nightmare for Milan. The Nerazzurri stunned San Siro with two early goals as Dzeko broke the deadlock emphatically before Mkhitaryan doubled the visitors' lead three minutes later. Stefano Pioli's side have struggled to get into the game and have looked uncharacteristically nervous in defence, with their rivals taking full advantage. The Rossoneri can count themselves lucky to be only two goals behind because Inter also had a penalty overturned - which looked like a certain foul - but nevertheless, Simone Inzaghi will be delighted with the score at the break.

45' + 4' HALF-TIME: MILAN 0-2 INTER

H. Mkhitaryan

Yellow Card

45' + 1' Mkhitaryan has also been given a yellow card for a foul.

R. Krunić

Yellow Card

45' + 1' Krunic talks his way into the referee's book. He thinks he should have had a free-kick for a flailing elbow in the face, but it wasn't given and he reacted by shouting at the ref.

45' We're into four minutes of additional time at the end of the first half.

44' Saelemaekers shows flair as he dribbles into the penalty box before Dumfries manages to get back and snatch the ball back. That's the best we've seen from a Milan player so far.

42' Diaz receives a pass from Hernandez with his back to the goal and spins before trying to poke the ball past Acerbi to run onto in the box, but he runs out of steam in his legs and is dispossessed.

40' Calhanoglu delivers a deep free-kick into the Milan box but Tonali does enough to put Martinez off before the hosts win a free-kick just outside their own area.

37' Martinez chases a poor Dumfries pass forward and almost capitalises when Calabria stalls as he looks to sweep up, but the Milan defender gets a lucky break as the ball ricochets away from goal.

34' MARTINEZ GOES CLOSE! He pulls the trigger from outside the box but his shot sails over the bar. Milan had managed to sort themselves out and get back into the game after a stunning Inter start, but they're on the ropes again!

33' PENALTY OVERTURNED! The referee was sent to the monitor by VAR and has overturned his own on-field decision. The San Siro is stunned because it looked like a certain foul on Martinez. Kjaer was booked for the tackle, but that has now been rescinded.

31' INTER HAVE A PENALTY! Kjaer brings down Martinez in the penalty box and the referee points to the spot! However, the VAR is going to take a look at this decision...

30' CALABRIA INTO THE SIDE-NETTING! He meets Messias' cross at the front post and flicks the ball into the side-netting.

28' Milan conceded more goals in the opening 11 minutes against Inter here than they had in their previous six Champions League games combined (1).

26' Martinez shows good balance as he controls a pass and spins to get on the wrong side of Tomori before looking to play Dimarco through on the left flank, but his pass is cut out by Kjaer.

24' Dumfries and Diaz both jump for a header on the halfway line but Dumfries clatters into the back of the Milan midfielder and concedes a foul.

23' Dezko slips away from Tomori as he tries to spark another Inter attack, but Calabria makes an important touch on the ball to disrupt his rhythm and regain possession.

20' Inter are only the fourth side to take a two-goal lead in the opening 11 minutes of a Champions League semi-final match, after Juventus v Man Utd in April 1999, Man Utd v Arsenal in May 2009, and Manchester City v Real Madrid in April 2022.

Junior Messias

I. Bennacer

17' Bennacer has a knock and will have to be replaced. A chance for Milan to regroup as Messias comes off the bench for the Algeria midfielder.

15' INTER HIT THE POST! Calhanoglu's strike from outside the box rattles the foot of the post before Barella diverts into the path of Mkhitaryan, who fires straight at Maignan from a glorious chance inside the area.

13' Dzeko is only the second 37-year-old to score in a Champions League semi-final, after Ryan Giggs in 2011. The veteran Inter forward has netted in all three of his appearances at this last-four stage in UEFA's coveted club competition.

F. Dimarco

Assist

11' Dimarco slips a brilliant ball into the centre of the box for Mkhitaryan to stroll onto before unleashing his strike.

H. Mkhitaryan

Goal

11' GOOOAL!! 2-0 TO THE NERAZZURRI! Mkhitaryan doubles Inter's lead in a dream start for Simone Inzaghi's side! He's put through on goal by Dimarco and smashes the ball past Maignan from close range.

H. Çalhanoğlu

Assist

8' It was an inch-perfect delivery from Calhanoglu that Dzeko was able to comfortably steer towards goal. The pace on the cross really helped the striker guide the ball past Maignan.

E. Džeko

Goal

8' GOOOAL!! 1-0 INTER! Dzeko hooks a volley with his left foot straight from Calhanoglu's corner into the top-right corner of the goal!

6' Inter have a free-kick just inside Milan's half and Dimarco sends it into the box which Acerbi heads towards goal, but his effort takes a deflection off Tonali and behind for a corner.

4' Kjaer sends a long pass over the top of the Inter defence but he overhits the ball and Onana comes off his line to collect it.

2' There's a cauldron-like atmosphere in San Siro as Hernandez makes the first big challenge on Dumfries and gives away a free-kick on the halfway line.

1' Inter get the match underway.

The teams are out on the pitch and ready for kick-off.

In Dzeko (37) and Giroud (36), this is the first Champions League semi-final match to see both teams name a player aged 36+ in their starting XIs since the 2007 first leg between Manchester United (Edwin van Der Sar, 36) and Milan (Paolo Maldini, 38).

This will be the fifth time that Milan and Internazionale have faced each other in European competition, with Milan unbeaten across the previous four (W2 D2). They previously met at this stage of the UEFA Champions League in 2002-03, with Milan progressing to the final on away goals (1-1 on aggregate).

The big team news is that Milan are without Rafael Leao, who sustained an injury in the club’s 2-0 win over Lazio last time out. In the opposition camp, Lukaku drops to Inter's bench with Dzeko taking his place in attack, and he'll be joined by Martinez who also returns to the starting 11.

SUBS: Samir Handanovic, Alex Cordaz, Stefan de Vrij, Robin Gosens, Raoul Bellanova, Danilo D'Ambrosio, Mattia Zanotti, Roberto Gagliardini, Kristjan Asllani, Marcelo Brozovic, Joaquin Correa, Romelu Lukaku.

INTER (3-5-2): Andre Onana; Matteo Darmian, Francesco Acerbi, Alessandro Bastoni; Denzel Dumfries, Nicolo Barella, Hakan Calhanoglu, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Federico Dimarco; Lautaro Martinez, Edin Dzeko.

SUBS: Antonio Mirante, Lapo Nava, Fode Ballo-Toure, Pierre Kalulu, Malick Thiaw, Matteo Gabbia, Tommaso Pobega, Charles De Ketelaere, Ante Rebic, Divock Origi, Junior Messias.

MILAN (4-2-3-1): Mike Maignan; Davide Calabria, Fikayo Tomori, Simon Kjaer, Theo Hernandez; Sandro Tonali, Rade Krunic; Alexis Saelemaekers, Ismael Bennacer, Brahim Diaz; Olivier Giroud.

Could this be a Milan derby for the ages? As we prepare to say goodbye to the famous San Siro stadium as we know it, its two residents - Milan and Inter - are set to lock horns in a blockbuster European semi-final, just as they did 20 years ago in the all-Milanese pulsating last-four tie in 2003. Let’s hope for more of the same this season!

Hello and welcome to live commentary of the Champions League semi-final first leg between Milan and Inter at San Siro.

Milan v Internazionale Live Commentary, 10/05/2023

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