Entering the Champions League final twice in 3 seasons, Inter Milan told European football: Low-cost team building has also achieved results

In the second leg of the Champions League semi-finals, Inter Milan and Barcelona contributed a wonderful game. The game was heart-warming, and both sides were leading each in different time periods, while Inter Milan won the game with resilience. Inter Milan scored 2-0 in the first half and Inter Milan 3-2 in the second half. The score in stoppage time was 3-3. Inter Milan scored 1 goal in overtime and led again, thus eliminating Barcelona and entering the Champions League final.

This is the time Inter Milan has reached the Champions League final twice in the last three seasons. For European football, this result is the performance of top teams in any case. Since the 1990s, there have been only a handful of teams that can do this, and only a few teams such as Real Madrid and Manchester United have been able to reach the Champions League finals in three seasons.

The problem is that Inter Milan's team building cost is very low. The total value of their starting lineup is 499 million euros, which is much lower than Barcelona's 620 million euros in starting lineup. Inter Milan's starting lineup is 29.4 years old, and three players are over 36 years old. Inter Milan is a team built entirely by a veteran + sign-free lineup.

Goalkeeper Sommer spent 6.75 million euros of Inter Milan's transfer fee. He signed from Bayern. He was 34 years old when he joined Inter Milan. He saved 7 times in this game, blocking goals worth 0.95, 61 touches, 41 passes 23 times, 27 long passes succeeded 9 times, and 7 clearances. He is a contributor to Inter Milan's defeat of Barcelona. Sofa gave 81 points tied for the highest score in the game.

Right wingback Dumfries participated in 5 goals in two rounds. This is the fullback signed by Inter Milan from the Dutch Eredivisie for 1,425 euros in the summer window of 2021. He can serve as a fullback with four defenders and a full-back with three central defenders. He has assisted 2 assists in this game, 55 touches in the whole game, 9 successful 20 passes, 4 passes to form a god, 3 crosses and 2 successful 2 times, 2 successful 2 times, and 6 successful 9 confrontations. He played a wing road with one person. The long diagonal pass from the side road to the far post in the penalty area is very effective.

Right central defender Bissek, a young central defender who spent 7.25 million euros to sign in the summer window in 2023. He suddenly dribbled the ball in the ribs and passed the ball with the wingback and midfielders, with very good passes, with few touches, but his tactics are very good.

dragged down central defender Archerby, a player signed by Inter Milan for 4 million euros. When Inter Milan was behind 2-3 and faced the dilemma of being eliminated, the oldest player in Inter Milan's starting lineup, the 37-year-old veteran stepped up and scored one goal in stoppage time, dragging the game into overtime. There were 12 clearances in the whole game, and two sideline central defenders rushed out, Archerby made up for the position everywhere to help Inter Milan win the game.

left center back Bastoni is the second highest-priced player in Inter Milan. The 80 million euro German price is second only to Lautaro. He joined Inter Milan from Atlanta in the summer window in 2017. The transfer fee was 30 million euros. He was signed as a young player at the time.

Midfielder Mkhitaryan was free of charge from Roma; midfielder Calhanoglu was free from AC Milan; midfielder Barrera, who was joined from Cagliari, had a transfer fee of 30 million euros. Left wingback Dimarco, produced by Inter Milan Youth Training. Center Toulam, a young center from Borussia Mönchengladbach's sign-free signing, and the most valuable center Lautaro, won it for 25 million euros in 2017.

The entire starting lineup, Inter Milan spent the highest transfer fee of only 30 million euros. Many players are sign-free, including playing stars + abandoned players from other teams + veterans, but they have created a lineup with very good tactical execution, and they rely on their own overall to win the game.

The 3-3 Barcelona game in the first leg has explained Inter Milan's overall tactical system, which is to quickly move forward from the two sides, large-scale diagonal long passes into the penalty area, and 3 or 4 players directly enter the penalty area to complete the grab points. This set of tactics relies on the fast back and forth ability of the two wingbacks, so both wingbacks are players who are in their prime. The double center in the frontcourt has a strong running ability, and is very good at changing positions and interfering with each other. The front midfielder Mkhitaryan is 36 years old, and still runs all over the field as another candidate to enter the penalty area.

In today's football world, if a team wants to achieve results, it is no longer just a stack of stars. It is more concerned about the overall, the team's fighting spirit, and the players' mentality. Inter Milan told teams across Europe that low-cost team building can also achieve results. The core issue is that your players have sufficient tactical qualities.

36-year-old Mkhitaryan is still running all over the field. He needs to cooperate with the wingback to block Yamal, and also needs to enter the penalty area to help grab the spot. This is very rare. Not all teams can learn how Inter Milan builds the team. They were originally a century-old giant and had enough brand appeal. They had a very good football director who carefully calculated each transfer income and transfer expenses. They had a good training system, the overall performance of the team was very good, and they also had a good locker room mentality, which was particularly rare.