Player Ratings: Inter 4-3 Barcelona – Frattesi Catapults Nerazzurri to Munich | OneFootball

Inter pulled off a phenomenal 4-3 extra-time win over runaway La Liga leaders Barcelona to lock down a place in the Champions League final. Simone Inzaghi’s side won one of the most sensational semi-final ties in the competition’s history.

After a remarkable 3-3 draw at Montjuic last week, there was everything to play for at San Siro tonight. Seeking their second appearance in the Champions League final in three years, Inter enjoyed raucous support from a sold-out San Siro.

That incredible atmosphere carried Simone Inzaghi through an intense first half. Despite facing a minor fitness issue before the game, Lautaro Martinez gritted his teeth and made the starting line-up. The Argentine opened the scoring with a simple tap-in midway through the first half.

He then drew a penalty for Inter on the stroke of halftime. Hakan Calhanoglu assumed responsibility and made no mistake, putting the Nerazzurri in control of this tie ahead of the last 45 minutes. However, things quickly change in football.

From what looked like a dream start, it became a nightmare for Inter. Barcelona cut the Italians’ lead in half less than ten minutes into the second half through Eric Garcia. The same player could’ve and should’ve leveled the score moments later, but Yann Sommer made a stunning save.

Yet, there was nothing the Swiss goalkeeper could do in the 60th minute when Dani Olmo hammered home a thumping header to restore parity. It was all Barcelona for the rest of the game, so it was only a matter of time before they’d find a well-deserved third.

Raphinha may have cemented his position in the Ballon d’Or race with a late strike to put Barca in front. However, Francesco Acerbi made it 3-3 in second-half stoppages to send the game into extra time. Davide Frattesi scored the decisive goal in extra time to send Inter through. Without further ado, let’s look at our player ratings.

Inter (3-5-2)

Yann Sommer – 7.5

His interventions didn’t always brim with confidence, but he got the job done in most cases. However, that save to thwart Garcia was nothing short of spectacular. It could’ve been had it not been for him.

Alessandro Bastoni – 5.5

Caught off position multiple times in the second half, the Italian superstar was merely a shadow of his former self and was directly responsible for Garcia’s goal.

Francesco Acerbi – 7.5

Made up for a lack of pace with decent positioning and excellent game sense, as not even tired legs could got the better of him after the halftime interval.

Yann Bisseck – 5.5

Perhaps intimidated by the size of the occasion, the German had several erratic clearances but never put his side at risk of losing possession in dangerous areas.

Federico Dimarco – 6

Seemingly learned his lesson in Catalonia when Lamine Yamal toyed with him for 55 minutes as he offered a much better defensive performance tonight.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan – 5.5

Despite a minimal offensive impact – barring one impressive volley in the first half – the Armenian’s tireless runs in defense caught the eye, especially when helping Dimarco defend against Yamal. Lucky not to concede a penalty.

Hakan Calhanoglu – 6

Inter’s midfield metronome had a shy evening by his standard and even picked up a silly yellow card for a cynical tackle on Olmo. However, he atoned for a rusty showing with a goal from the spot.

Nicolo Barella – 5.5

Had one poor giveaway in the first half that nearly backfired on Inter but got away unpunished. Otherwise, it was another day in the office for the restless Nerazzurri stalwart.

Denzel Dumfries – 6.5

After destroying Barcelona’s defense in the first leg, the Dutchman continued in the same vein, setting Lautaro up on a platter for the opener. Did the same for Acerbi later on.

Marcus Thuram – 5

It felt like the game flew past the French center-forward, who never had a chance to test Wojciech Szczesny. But he woke up in extra time to help Inter go into the final.c

Lautaro Martinez – 7.5

Inter can always rely on their talismanic captain to deliver when it matters the most. It was the case again this evening. In addition to scoring the opening goal, El Toro drew a penalty.

Substitutes

Matteo Darmian – 6

Mehdi Taremi – 4.5