With his goal, Edin Dzeko opens the door to the Champions League final wide open. Against AC Milan, the aging Inter striker scores very early and is worth seeing. The former Wolfsburg top scorer has entered a historic list – and could set a new record in the final.
An aging star striker has to watch from the stands as another aging star striker makes it big: AC Milan vs Inter Milan, it wasn’t just the first leg of the Champions League semifinals, it was also the very unequally weighted duel between two footballers whose careers are slow , but surely ends. Zlatan Ibrahimović’s duel against Edin Dzeko – with a clear winner. It was Inter’s guest, because AC owns home rights.
Before the game in the Giuseppe Meazza Stadium, which was clad in red and black that evening, it was not at all clear that one of the two could become the match winner. The 41-year-old Ibrahimović is suffering from a calf injury and it is unclear whether he will be able to compete again this season. Rather, it is possible that he has already played his last game for AC, his contract expires in the summer. The Swede had to sit in the stands – and watch his opponent Dzeko trump.
The commitment of the Bosnian, who celebrated the German championship 14 years ago with VfL Wolfsburg and Felix Magath, was not clear before the line-ups were announced. At the age of 37 he is no longer a regular player, and his contract ends on June 30th. Will he continue at Inter? “You have to ask the club that,” he said. Instead of him, coach Simone Inzaghi usually relies on Romelu Lukaku, who was in such good form recently. In the last four games in the league he has played three times over 90 minutes, scoring three goals and serving three more. But on this long-awaited premier class evening, Inzaghi gave preference to the former Mittelland Canal neighbor.
Worth seeing for the early 1:0
At the beginning of May, he was allowed to play against Hellas Verona for more than 90 minutes in the league and scored twice, but otherwise he is usually only substituted on for a few minutes. His last goal before the brace was on January 4th, when he scored the decisive goal had scored in the win against the already established new Italian champions SSC Napoli.
But the trust in the veteran star paid off early on: after just eight minutes, Dzeko sunk the ball into the goal after a corner from ex-Hamburg player Hakan Calhanoglu. He had cleverly made room for himself against Milan captain Davide Calabria while standing and volleyed the ball from six meters out, which AC keeper Mike Maignan could not hold. “What did I say last time? Well, I’m still 37, but I feel good,” said Dzeko after the game on “Amazon Prime Italia”. He went on to say he’s okay with his brief spells: “I feel fresher today, maybe because I was able to rest three days ago.”
His early goal put him on a historic list: at 37 years and 54 days, he is now the second-oldest goalscorer in a Champions League semi-final. Only Ryan Giggs was 94 days older when he scored in a Manchester United jersey against FC Schalke 04 on April 26, 2011 – at that time against a goalkeeper named Manuel Neuer. “Sometimes the goals don’t come, but I bring more than just goals for the team. I work hard for my colleagues. And today I scored, but I also did important work for the team,” said Dzeko with satisfaction after the game .
Calhanoglu with special feud
His goal was a successful collaboration with Calhanoglu, who once again made himself unpopular with his corner and almost an own goal – his shot in the 16th minute went just off the post. The Turk switched from the Bundesliga to AC Milan in 2017 and moved on to city rivals Inter in 2021. A change that nobody from the red-blacks forgave him, ex-player Theo Hernandez, for example, insulted him and showered him with malice when AC became Italian champions last season. In the 78th minute, you could clearly hear how angry he still was: a loud whistle accompanied his substitution.
Calhanoglu couldn’t care less that night as his team won 2-0. Ex-Dortmunder Henrikh Mkhitaryan (11th) scored the second goal just three minutes after Dzeko’s opening goal. A furious first half was enough to beat the city rivals. AC defender Fikayo Tomori said in frustration: “Obviously I’m disappointed. The way we started the game and conceded two early goals,” he told BT Sport. “First after a corner and then right after that. It’s difficult when it’s 0-0 but to go two goals down in the first 15 minutes is a punch in the stomach.
AC “spectators only”
Inter coach Inzaghi, on the other hand, was delighted: “We had an exceptional first half, the result was closer than it should have been with what we achieved.” He not only referred to Calhanoglu’s post hit, but also to a penalty taken back in the 31st minute. Lautaro Martinez fell after an alleged foul by ex-Wolfsburg player Simon Kjaer, but the video check convicted him of bad theatrics. Referee Jesus Gil Manzano reversed his decision.
Inzaghi was full of praise: “The boys were really great, how they mastered such an emotional game.” The opponent, on the other hand, was in a bad mood. “We started the game very badly and didn’t get into the duels at all,” said former Schalke player Malick Thiaw, who came on for Kjaer in the 59th minute, at DAZN. “Inter were more greedy, we were just spectators. I feel sorry for the Milan fans that we put in such a performance.”
The second leg will start next Tuesday, when San Siro will be dominated by black and blue. “We have to keep going like this. We know that we are just one step away from a dream that we believed in from August until today,” said Inzaghi. There are still 30 days until the final in Istanbul. Incidentally, a new record would then beckon for Dzeko: The oldest goalscorer in a Champions League final is Paolo Maldini. For AC Milan – of all things – he scored in the 2005 final against Liverpool. The Italy legend was 36 years and 333 days old at the time.