FLASH
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One dreams of lifting the "cup with big ears" for the first time in its history, the other of winning a fourth after being crowned in 1964, 1965 and 2010. Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) faces Inter in the Champions League (CL) final, on Saturday, May 31, in Munich (Germany), in a match with a very uncertain outcome.
Two teams with different histories
PSG is a young club founded in 1970, Inter an institution born in 1908 – as is their style of play. Under Luis Enrique, the Parisians play a more attacking game and are more focused on ball control than their opponents (59.5% average possession in the Champions League this season, compared to 47.7%).
The Italians, on the other hand, tend to play tighter in defense and are able to keep their backs bent in order to attack better on counterattacks.
Simone Inzaghi: The future of the Inter coach, who has a year left on his contract with the Serie A side, remains up in the air, with strong rumours linking him with a lucrative £25m-a-year move to Saudi Professional League side Al Hilal, perhaps in time for the Club World Cup this summer. The Italian is also reported to have held talks with Tottenham Hotspur. Asked about his plans, Inzaghi gave a curt reply: "My future is because there's a final tomorrow. That's all I want to talk about."
Luis Enrique: “Every team does things differently and has certain aspects of the game,” the PSG coach said of his team’s Italian opponents. “We all know Inter’s competitive spirit and we know Italian football. They are a very complete team that plays the ball well. And when they don’t have the ball, they defend very well. Inter are a team with very clear leaders. We won’t change anything in the way we attack or defend, but we will have to adapt to the characteristics of each opponent.”
Ousmane Dembele: “This has been a dream of mine since I was a child,” said the PSG striker, whose form this season has been impressive. “I am very focused. This will be an unforgettable moment. I just hope that history is written. It will be a tense match. We know that Paris will be full of emotions. You have to stay calm. We are very excited, but, as has been said, we have to be calm, cool, collected, serious but smiling, because this is an extraordinary moment for us.”
Lautaro Martinez: “We have definitely improved a lot as a team,” said the Inter captain and forward when asked if this Serie A side is more capable of winning the Champions League than the team that lost to Manchester City two years ago. “We have developed, we have grown. We have faced some first-class opponents in some very challenging arenas - we have been against teams that have had unbeaten records at home for a long time, but we showed up there, played our football, showed what we represent and earned respect in this competition.”
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