10 unforgettable moments: 5 May 2010, the Coppa Italia triumph

MILAN – On 5 May 2010 Inter won the first title of their unforgettable Treble success: the Coppa Italia at the Stadio Olimpico against Roma. Milito’s goal was enough to seal it in a tough, edgy and hard-fought match. Let’s relive that first step towards greatness with ten moments to remember.

WE’LL RELIVE THE WHOLE OF INTER 1-0 ROMA AT 20:45 CEST TONIGHT ON YOUTUBE

1) Inter’s journey in the Coppa Italia 2009/10 Inter’s 2009/10 Coppa Italia journey started on 16 December 2009 at San Siro with a 1-0 win over Livorno in the round of 16 thanks to Sneijder’s free kick goal. Their second game was on 28 January, again at San Siro, when they faced Juventus in the quarter-final. The Bianconeri took the lead through Diego’s goal in the 10th minute, but Lucio’s 79th-minute equaliser and Balotelli’s 89th-minute winner sealed a 2-1 win for the Nerazzurri. The semi-finals saw Inter beat Fiorentina twice: a 1-0 win in the first leg in Milan thanks to Milito’s goal, followed by another 1-0 win away in the second leg thanks to a strike from Eto’o.

Meanwhile, Roma’s path to the Coppa Italia Final was this: Roma 3-1 Trieste (round of 16); Roma 1-0 Catania (quarter-final); Roma 2-0 Udinese and Udinese 1-0 Roma (semi-finals).

2) The Giallorossi’s Olimpico, but many Nerazzurri fans present The final at the Stadio Olimpico had, of course, a strong Giallorossi setting. The passionate home crowd helped to spur on Roma’s players, who were fired up by the fact that the Nerazzurri had leapfrogged them in the league. After their defeat against Sampdoria, Roma had returned to second place in the table, and Inter returned to the Stadio Olimpico on 5 May having beaten Lazio 2-0 there (thanks to Samuel and Motta) three days earlier, which confirmed their top spot in the standings.

3) Injuries and selection: Inter’s starting 11 Sneijder had not managed the final training session before the game because he was sore, Pandev was on the bench and Lucio was out. And Mourinho chose this eleven for the final: Julio Cesar; Maicon, Cordoba, Materazzi, Chivu; Zanetti, Cambiasso, Thiago Motta; Sneijder; Milito, Eto'o. Mourinho was then forced to replace Sneijder with Balotelli in the opening minutes, and Cordoba had to come off for Samuel just before the first half ended. The third substitution then occurred in added time at the end of 90 minutes, when Muntari came on for Balotelli.

4) Sneijder’s injury early on Ready, set, go: the ball was in mid-air and Sneijder intervened with a flying touch but was also hit hard, straight on the thigh. It was Burdisso who had made contact and Sneijder remained on the ground. Just minutes after the game had begun Inter found themselves without the Dutchman who limped off and it was Balotelli who replaced him. The Italian forward went on to put in a performance of the highest quality.

5) Milito’s goal ruled out, Mourinho looking for…VAR In the 17th minute, a typical Nerazzurri move seemed to give Inter the lead: a ball in behind for Milito, whose right-footed shot beat Julio Sergio. However, the flag was up for offside and the goal was immediately ruled out. There was no VAR back then, but José Mourinho rushed to a TV screen that had been set up on the touchline. He would see a replay that showed the goal had correctly been disallowed.

6) Milito’s winning goal One of the best goals that season, a truly memorable strike. It turned out to be the first of four goals that El Principe, Diego Alberto Milito, scored to hand Inter three trophies. Thiago Motta played it through for the Nerazzurri striker who drove towards Roma’s goal and fired an unstoppable right-footed shot into the top corner.

7) The elusive knockout blow It was a game that remained open until the very end, with Roma close to equalising on several occasions, especially when Juan forced Julio Cesar into action following a header after a free kick. Vucinic also had a great chance in the dying minutes, but failed to convert. Inter stayed in control and were close to doubling their lead first with Balotelli and then with Eto’o, but both were unable to do so. 

8) Totti’s red card and the ill-tempered end There were eight yellows and one red in that match in which some of Roma’s players played on the edge with repeated, tough tackles and in the end, Francesco Totti was sent off in the 88th minute for a kick out on Balotelli. Even the final whistle was marred by tempers flaring after Taddei’s wild tackle on Muntari.

9) The Nerazzurri’s sixth Coppa Italia With the victory at the Stadio Olimpico, Inter won their sixth Coppa Italia in the Club’s history. The seventh would then come a year later after beating Palermo in the final. Inter’s Coppa Italia triumphs: 1938/1939; 1977/1978; 1981/1982; 2004/2005; 2005/2006; 2009/2010; 2010/2011.

10) Celebrations in the rain “That was the first stage and we deserved it”, with the Coppa Italia in hand Javier Zanetti already had the next steps in mind: the Scudetto and the Champions League. “We gave joy to the fans and it wasn’t easy to win in this stadium,” Esteban Cambiasso said. It was the tenth trophy that Ivan Cordoba had won with the Nerazzurri, a tally that didn’t end there. Maicon’s words closed that magical night: “This is just the first objective.”