Man City vs Inter Milan: UCL Final Match Preview, Predicted Line-ups and Fantasy XI

The Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul is all set to host a UEFA Champions League final after 18 years as Man City vs Inter Milan is set.

Match Details:

• Location: Istanbul, Turkey
• Stadium: Ataturk Olympic Stadium
• Date: Saturday 10 June
• Kick-off Time: 20:00 BST / 15:00 ET / 12:00 PT
• Referee: Szymon Marciniak (POL)
• VAR: Tomasz Kwiatkowski (POL)

Man City vs Inter Milan: Match Preview

Manchester City are all set to square up vs Inter Milan in their quest for their maiden UEFA Champions League title. Meanwhile, the Nerazzurri will face Pep Guardiola's men in search of their fourth premier European title.

🇹🇷🌅#UCLfinal pic.twitter.com/JiXLregnCY

— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) June 9, 2023

It is going to be yet another nail-biting final between two teams who have gone past the best teams from across Europe to have this opportunity to fight for the coveted Champions League title in Istanbul, Turkey.

Pep Guardiola's men have been a dominant force in the Champions League this season and have not lost a single fixture throughout. They were unbeaten in the group stages and ended up right at the top with four wins and two draws. In the Round of 16, City went past RB Leipzig without much trouble, they won the tie 8-1 over the two legs.

Manchester City then crushed German giants Bayern Munich 4-1 in the quarter-finals to square up against defending champions Real Madrid in the semis. Los Blancos secured a hard-fought 1-1 draw in the first leg but they were thrashed 4-0 in the return fixture.

The English champions will be high on confidence heading into this final after smashing the most dominant force in Europe. They have already secured the FA Cup and the Premier League and could become the second English team to claim the treble if they manage to win the UCL. And, Guardiola will be determined to get it right this time after having lost a Champions League final with Manchester City against Chelsea.

Meanwhile, Inter Milan have been on a dream run in this season. They were decent in the Serie A as they managed to claim the third spot. But, as far as the UEFA Champions League is concerned, the Nerazzurri have been on fire throughout. Inter finished second in the group stage behind Bayer Munich after winning just three out of the six matches. They might not have topped the group stages but have hardly put a foot wrong post that.

Simone Inzaghi's men squared up against FC Porto in the Round of 16; they put forward a solid defensive display to go past the Portuguese side 1-0 over two legs. In the quarters, Inter went past Benfica 5-3 over two legs and set up an all-Milan Champions League semi-final after ages.

Also Read: https://sportzpoint.com/football/ac-milan-vs-inter-milan-uefa-champions-league-head-to-head-history/

San Siro played host to a high-voltage two-legged semi-finals that saw Inter come out on top with a 3-0 scoreline. They did the majority of the work in the first fixture itself and closed it out with a solid defensive performance in the second.

Their defensive display against AC Milan will give them confidence heading into this final. With both Manchester City and Inter Milan ready to give it their all.

Team News:

Man City:

Guardiola revealed at a press conference on Tuesday that Kyle Walker missed City's most recent training session after picking up a back problem during last Saturday's FA Cup final.

😮#UCLfinal pic.twitter.com/2MMYFdFUwZ

— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) June 9, 2023

However, the right-back has since alleviated fears that he could miss the Champions League final, insisting that he sat out the session as a precaution, joking that he's 'just getting old'. City do not have any other injury concerns at this point.

Inter Milan:

Inter are continuing to sweat over the fitness of defender Milan Skriniar, who has not played since March after undergoing back surgery.

⚽️👀 #UCLfinal pic.twitter.com/a2ddP1NMgg

— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) June 9, 2023

Skriniar will join PSG on a free transfer later this summer and at this stage it's unlikely that he'll start the final.

Joaquin Correa is expected to overcome a muscle problem in time for Saturday.

Route to the Final:

Man City:

Manchester City's run through to Istanbul has been pretty serene truth be told, with Guardiola's side yet to taste defeat in their 12 outings.

Sevilla were swatted to one side with ease in the group stages, both home and away, while Dortmund and Copenhagen were overcome at the Etihad. 0-0 draws were secured in the reverse fixtures, the latter of which saw plenty of changes made to Guardiola's usual starting lineup.

The best match ever I mean seeing haaland score his first a mega hatrick in the champions league feels so good 🩵🩵🩵🩵pic.twitter.com/5URVCFkrk7

— #Rey17 🏆🏆⏳ (@city1over) June 7, 2023

RB Leipzig thought they had got their teeth into City after securing a draw in the first leg of their round of 16 clash, only to be pummelled 7-0 three weeks later. Bayern were then outclassed in both legs of their quarter-final tie, before City put on a masterclass to tear defending champions Real Madrid apart in the semis.

Inter Milan:

Inter weren't expected to progress beyond the group stage, so the fact they're in the final is a pretty remarkable achievement.

Their place in the knockout stages was secured after taking four points off Barcelona in their two meetings, in addition to picking up maximum points against whipping boys Viktoria Plzen.

Champions League Update

Inter Milan too good for Ac Milan
Lautaro Martinez – The Best Argentina player this season – scored only goal for inter.

Final With Inter Will be too cool.

Bring it on

pic.twitter.com/WymwVfHIEA

— 🐐Azam-K (@Azamk555) May 16, 2023

The draw then really started to open up for Inter after they dispatched Porto 1-0 on aggregate in the round of 16. Benfica, normally so good at home, were blunted on their own patch before a six-goal thriller played out at the San Siro, while neighbourhood rivals AC Milan were unable to lay a glove on Inzaghi's side in the semis.

Man City vs Inter Milan: Head to Head

Manchester City and Inter Milan are on an even footing as far as the head-to-head record is concerned and have won one game apiece out of the two matches that have been played between the two teams.

English and Italian teams have met on four previous occasions in the UEFA Champions League – Liverpool have been the only English team to face an Italian team in the showpiece event so far.

Manchester City have appeared in only two European finals in their history and lost their most recent such game against Chelsea by a 1-0 margin in the UEFA Champions League final in 2021.

Inter Milan are featuring in their 11th major final in Europe – Juventus and AC Milan are the only two Italian teams that have a better record in this regard.

Predicted Line-ups:

Man City predicted lineup (3-2-4-1): Ederson; Walker, Dias, Akanji; Stones, Rodri; Silva, De Bruyne, Gundogan, Grealish; Haaland

Inter predicted lineup (3-5-2): Onana; Darmian, Acerbi, Bastoni; Dumfries, Barella, Calhanoglu, Brozovic, Dimarco; Dzeko, Martinez