Champions League semi-finals: Team of the round
Manchester City and Inter have never played each other in competitive competition before but that will change on Saturday 10 June when they meet in the UEFA Champions League final.
City earned their spot with a devastating 4-0 win over Real Madrid in the second leg of their semi-final, winning 5-1 on aggregate, while Inter breezed past neighbourhood rivals Milan 3-0 to return to European football’s most prestigious final for the first time since 2010.
Both have enjoyed superb runs in this season’s competition, with a number of their best players taking to centre stage when it really mattered, and unsurprisingly they dominate 90min’s Champions League semi-finals team of the round.
Here’s who made the cut.
GK: Andre Onana (Inter)
Emerging from two Champions League semi-final ties with back-to-back clean sheets is pretty good going, so hats off to Andre Onana.
A terrific save early from Brahim Diaz in the second leg maintained Inter’s 2-0 advantage, and although the Cameroonian’s work didn’t really get any harder than that, he still had to remain alert and concentrated throughout.
Visiting scouts from Chelsea and Tottenham will have been impressed – Onana is expected to leave San Siro this summer to help raise vital funds, regardless of whether or not Inter savour the ultimate success in Istanbul.
CB: Ruben Dias (Manchester City)
Manchester City were so dominant against Real Madrid in the second leg of their semi-final tie that Ruben Dias could conceivably have had the night off and you wouldn’t have even noticed.
Kyle Walker was arguably the better performer on the night, rendering the threat of Vinicius Junior null and void, but Dias‘ ability to maintain possession and mop up when needed cancelled out the threat of the equally dangerous Karim Benzema.
He also pulled a stunning goal-saving clearance at the Bernabeu that ensured City’s early momentum didn’t go to waste.
CB: Francesco Acerbi (Inter)
It’s fair to say Olivier Giroud – so often a big game player for AC Milan, any of his former clubs and France – was barely noticeable during the Champions League semis.
That’s because veteran Francesco Acerbi, ironically a former Milan player, put on a defensive clinic across the two legs to mark him completely out of the game. With Rafael Leao below his best because of an injury niggle, that left the Rossoneri pretty toothless going forward – though Erling Haaland will be a completely different proposition in the final.
CB: Manuel Akanji (Manchester City)
It’s fair to say eyebrows were raised when Manchester City picked up Manuel Akanji from Borussia Dortmund last September for £15m – a player widely criticised for his part in Dortmund’s failed 2019/20 Bundesliga title challenge.
Eyebrows have continued to be raised over the past eight months but for entirely different reasons. The Swiss has been a model of consistency, adapting seamlessly to City’s style of play, and his performance level has raised ten-fold.
Akanji has also starred on the right, centre and left side of defence, with his performances in the latter helping City to cope without the injured Nathan Ake. Against Real, he was super composed on the ball, in both defence and attack, and scored the third to completely kill the second leg.
DM: John Stones (Manchester City)
Equally as impressive has been John Stones‘ reinvention as a top-level inverted full-back/ball-playing centre-back/defensive midfielder hybrid.
The 28-year-old has been everywhere in recent weeks and things were no different against a Real Madrid midfield boasting Luka Modric and Toni Kroos among others. At the Etihad, they were completely overwhelmed and all at sea as Stones and Rodri, who is unlucky to miss out on selection here, ran the show.
DM: Ilkay Gundogan (Manchester City)
You’d have been forgiven for thinking that Ilkay Gundogan had already played the best football of his career during the 2020/21 season, when he scored 17 goals in all competitions and became one of the best box-to-box midfielders in the business.
But the 32-year-old appears to be reading a completely different script, as he continues to age like a vintage Chateauneuf-du-Pape. Against Real Madrid, he was absolutely brilliant, so it’s hardly surprising Barcelona are desperate to sign him at the end of his contract.
RM: Bernardo Silva (Manchester City)
Bernardo Silva was pretty ineffective at the Bernabeu thanks to Eduardo Camavinga, but he came alive at the Etihad to fire City into their second Champions League final in three seasons.
The Portuguese maestro was always a threat on the right flank, drifting inside a combination of Camavinga, Luka Modric and David Alaba, and took up a superb position to score the opening goal. Kevin De Bruyne still had to thread the needle but Silva’s movement created the chance.
Once he slotted that home to open the scoring, next up was putting the game out of sight. A cool, beautifully weighted header would be Silva’s chosen method, capping a perfect 10/10 display.
CM: Hakan Calhanoglu (Inter)
Inter’s midfield dominance was key to overpowering neighbourhood rivals AC Milan, and there was no better player than Hakan Calhanoglu.
The 29-year-old, snatched from Milan on a free transfer two years ago, got things going with a delicious in-swinging corner for Edin Dzeko, and alongside Nicolo Barella, he ensured there was no way back into the game for Stefano Pioli’s side.
CM: Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City)
There’s not much to say about Kevin De Bruyne that hasn’t been said already. Sensational, breathtaking and genius all likely descriptions you’ve read in various columns.
Things were no different against Real Madrid, as they were put to the sword by another masterclass from the Belgian. The technique for De Bruyne’s equalising goal at the Bernabeu was stunning and his overall performance at the Etihad was everything you’d expect it to be.
LM: Jack Grealish (Manchester City)
„It was meticulous recruitment,‘ Rio Ferdinand told BT Sport about Manchester City’s decision to sign Jack Grealish in 2022. „He (Guardiola) saw something and went: ‚This is going to be different to what I’ve had before‘.
„Raheem Sterling was the player playing before him. He was very different player, but he’s seen something in Jack and thought it’d give another dimension to this team.“
A different dimension is indeed what Grealish has given City – the ability to speed up play or slow things down, get to the byline or come back inside, retain the ball or pass it off quickly. Impressive.
CF: Lautaro Martinez (Inter)
Lautarto Martinez trumping Erling Haaland in the Champions League semi-final team of the round? Nobody really saw that coming.
But in reality, while Haaland has been smashing every record under the sun, Martinez has been quietly going about his business at Inter for the fourth season in a row. The Argentine is now on 25 goals for the season in all competitions, matching his record mark from 2021/22, and may be the best striker in the world when it comes to playing in a front two.
His understanding with Lukaku? Telepathic.
His understanding with Dzeko? Understated.
If Inter do win the Champions League, don’t bet against Martinez being the hero.