Inter vice President Javier Zanetti admits he would avoid meeting Real Madrid in the Champions League Final: ‘This competition seems made for them.’
The Nerazzurri have qualified for their sixth Champions League Final in history after beating city rivals Milan 3-0 on aggregate in the semifinals.
They will face Real Madrid or Manchester City in the Final in Istanbul on June 10.
“I’d like to avoid Real Madrid because this competition seems made for them,” Zanetti said after the final whistle in an interview with Sky Sport Italia.
“However, the most important thing is to have arrived here. It was a difficult path, it’s not easy to play a derby in the semifinals. I did and I was defeated in 2003.”
Lautaro Martinez scored the winner in a 1-0 win on Tuesday and was named Man of the Match by UEFA.
“I am so happy for him,” said Zanetti.
“He improves every year with us. He’s a point of reference for the team and we keep hold of him because he’s too important. For now, he stays here, then we’ll see. Let’s enjoy this win. He’s happy here, where he has found his home. He is happy in Milan and I hope it will last long.”
Inter had been drawn into the ‘group of death’ in August with Bayern Munich, Barcelona and Viktoria Plzen and qualified as runners-up eliminating the Catalans. They beat Porto, Benfica and Milan in the knock-out phase, keeping five clean sheets in six games.
“It was tough, but we’ve made an incredible thing. Credit goes to the team and the coach who have been able to react in difficult moments. He [Inzaghi] hasn’t spoken much and proved to be worthy of the Final.”
Zanetti’s compatriot Lautaro also spoke to the media after the match, saying that Argentina’s World Cup victory inspired the Nerazzurri on their path to the Champions League Final.