Maicon knocks in the second goal

What more could you ask for from the home club?

Inter Milan convincingly beat what many have called the world’s greatest soccer team yesterday with a 3-1 victory over Barcelona.  The match was controversial from the start, as Barcelona endured a 10 hour bus ride to Milan because the European airspace was still mostly closed.

Despite what had to have been an uncomfortable ride, Barcelona struck first.  The simply named Pedro took a pass from Maxwelland buried it in the back of the net for an early lead in the 19th minute.  The crowd, knowing what Barca had done at the Emirates in the previous round, had to have been rather uncomfortable, especially since for the rest of the first half Lionel Messi was quiet but threatening.  Their discomfort was increased when Inter missed a few good chances from Diego Milito to even the score.

That equalizer came in the 30th minute when Milito decided that if he couldn’t put the ball past Victor Valdes, Wesley Sneijder on the wing could and did.  Inter went ahead for good in the 48th minute when Milito again garnered an assist, this time to Maicon from close range.  The man of the match finally got his goal in the 61st minute, closing out the scoring and giving Inter a comfortable cushion in aggregate goals.

Barcelona’s defense was inadequate yesterday and too often left attackers unmarked.  Barcelona needs at least two goals to advance and although they have to be favored at home, Inter Milan has put themselves in an excellent position to advance.  They probably could not have expected a better result, and as such may be the slight favorite to advance to the Champions League finals.