With the Serie A title and the Italian Cup already won, Inter Milan
is now out to make history by beating Bayern Munich in the
Champions League final and completing the first Italian treble.
Coach Jose Mourinho has said Inter has already done enough by
reaching the final - but he replaced Roberto Mancini two years ago
with the aim of winning the club's first European Cup since 1965.
A fifth consecutive Serie A title was the minimum that was
expected this season, and Inter got off to a flying start with a
4-0 win over AC Milan in the second match of the campaign.
That match was Wesley Sneijder's first for Inter, and the
Netherlands midfielder rewarded Mourinho by taking control of the
game and pulling the strings behind the attacking duo of Samuel
Eto'o and Diego Milito, something he continued to do for much of
the season.
Eto'o and Milito were another pair of crucial signings. Eto'o
arrived from Barcelona in exchange for Zlatan Ibrahimovic and ?66
million ($93.5 million), while Milito made the move from Genoa.
Eto'o hasn't maintained his early-season form, but his high
energy levels allowed Milito to take advantage of the space that
opened up in opposition defenses. Cameroon captain Eto'o weighed in
with 12 goals overall.
Milito, meanwhile, picked up where he left off last season
for Genoa, for which he scored 24 goals. He scored 22 goals in the
league for Inter as well as the winner in the Italian Cup final.
Inter's attacking prowess is demonstrated by the fact it
scored the highest number of goals in Serie A with 75. The defense,
meanwhile, was the tightest in the league with only 34 goals
conceded.
Much of that success was down to the partnership formed
between Brazil captain Lucio and Argentina international Walter
Samuel in central defense. On the right, Maicon has powered up and
down the flank to contribute to the defense and attack in equal
measure.
Behind them, Brazil's Julio Cesar has quickly become regarded
among the world's best goalkeepers with his athletic displays.
Inter captain Javier Zanetti continues to defy the forces of
time at 36. The Argentine player has fitted into the team wherever
he is needed, most commonly at left back.
For much of the season, Inter looked like it would walk away
with the title, especially after the winter break when AC Milan and
Juventus began to fall away as challengers.
But as Inter began to focus more on the Champions League, its
form started to dip in the league. In five league games between
mid-February and mid-March, Inter won once and drew three times.
At the same time, AS Roma was in the middle of a remarkable
run of form that saw it go 24 games unbeaten, including a crucial
2-1 win over Inter.
When Inter drew with Fiorentina, Roma's win over Atalanta put
it top. The two teams switched positions until Roma lost at home to
Sampdoria three games from the end.
A week later, Roma had to rely on city rival Lazio doing it a
favor at home against Inter. It didn't happen, and Inter had little
difficulty winning 2-0 to set up its charge to league glory.
