The Champions League final between Manchester City and Inter Milan will take place on Saturday in Istanbul. Pep Guardiola’s English team is much favoured to win the competition for the first time.
The game, which will be played at the 75,000-seat Ataturk Olympic Stadium, will begin at 10:00 pm (1900 GMT) in the Turkish capital and will put an end to a season that, after a lengthy break for the World Cup, has practically reached mid-June.
City has spent the past ten years vying for this trophy after undergoing a transformation in the wake of an Abu Dhabi-backed takeover in 2008.
They were underdogs before Sheikh Mansour took over, but after just claiming their fifth Premier League championship in six years, they have emerged as England’s dominant force.
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Guardiola, who is vying for his third Champions League title in coaching, has created a club that is perhaps playing the best football since his legendary Barcelona squad from a decade ago.
Two years after losing to Chelsea in Porto, they are now through to their second Champions League final in three seasons and are attempting to achieve a trifecta after winning the Premier League and FA Cup.
Manchester United, under Alex Ferguson, became the last English team to accomplish that feat in 1999.
“We have been good in this competition, but we just need to find a way to win the first one,” said Kevin De Bruyne on Friday.
“If we do it, it would obviously be immense for the players, for the club, and for the fans it would be something amazing.”
The Abu Dhabi United Group’s investment helped City rise, and as a result, they will have the highest soccer revenue in 2022 with 731 million euros ($787 million).
Given that City was accused in February by the Premier League with 115 alleged financial rule violations between 2009 and 2018, there are doubts about their success.
For “serious financial fair-play breaches” in Europe, City was given a two-year suspension from UEFA tournaments in February 2020; however, the punishment was later reversed.
Cities have grown to be a power that is hard to resist. They have only lost once in 27 games and easily defeated RB Leipzig, Bayern Munich, and Real Madrid in the knockout stages.
Along with Guardiola’s choice to play John Stones as a midfielder, Erling Haaland’s 52 goals across all competitions have taken them to a new level.
Despite being one of Europe’s most prestigious clubs, Inter shouldn’t be able to compete with City in terms of finances. The Nerazzurri’s income for the previous year was less than half that of City, and they have significant debts.
They defeated Porto, their first triumph in a Champions League knockout match since 2011, and advanced from their group ahead of Barcelona.
They then defeated Benfica and AC Milan to advance to the championship. They just defended their Coppa Italia title and have won 11 of their last 12 games.
De Bruyne remarked, “We comprehend what they are as a squad.
“They defend incredibly well. We don’t expect it to be an open game. That doesn’t happen a lot in a final anyway.”
Inter are odds-on favourites to win the Champions League after reaching their first final since winning the title for the third time in club history in 2010.
Coach Simone Inzaghi stated, “We know we have a great opportunity to write a new page in the history of our club.”
