Champions League semifinals: Barcelona-Inter revives memories of 2010 epic and Arsenal hosts PSG
The free-flowing attack of Barcelona comes up against the rugged, smothering defense of Inter Milan in the Champions League semifinals. Ring any bells? Go back to 2010 — when Lamine Yamal was not even 3 years old and Lionel Messi was close to his prime — and Camp Nou was the scene of one of the most memorable matches in Champions League history, between the same teams going head-to-head there again on Wednesday. Protecting a 3-1 lead from the first leg, Inter — coached at the time by Jose Mourinho — delivered a defensive masterclass against Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona to survive with 10 men for more than an hour and lose just 1-0 to progress to the title match. Memories will come flooding back ahead of the rematch this week, especially with the two protagonists owning the same traits as 15 years ago. Barcelona is back in the Champions League semifinals for the first time since the 2018-19 season, on the back of by far the best attack in the new-look, 36-team league stage. With Yamal, Raphinha and Robert Lewandowski up front, Barca scored 28 goals in eight games — and has netted nine more goals in eliminating Benfica and Borussia Dortmund in the knockouts. Then there’s Inter, the Italian champion, which conceded just once in eight games in the first stage and held on grimly to oust Bayern Munich in the quarterfinals. Inter won the 2010 final, against Bayern, for a third European Cup title so its run toward the final this season has echoes of that title-winning campaign. Arsenal vs.
