Simone Inzaghi 'always believed' Inter Milan could reach Champions League final

Inter Milan manager Simone Inzaghi said he and his players "always believed" they could reach the Champions League final following Tuesday's 3-0 aggregate victory over rivals AC Milan.

Leading 2-0 from the semi-final first leg as the away side at the San Siro, Inter returned to the stadium they share with AC as the hosts on Tuesday to secure a 1-0 win on the night, courtesy of Lautaro Martinez's 74th-minute goal.

Only a few weeks ago, Inzaghi faced criticism and was under pressure after a lacklustre run of domestic results, yet Inter have rediscovered their form – the semi-final second leg win over Milan was their eighth in a row in all competitions.

"It was a dream at the start, but we always believed, we had an extraordinary run and to win the semi-final in a derby this way is immensely satisfying. We can only praise the lads," Inzaghi told Sport Mediaset.

Inter are third in Serie A and will face Fiorentina in the Coppa Italia final on May 24.

Their return to form has been built on a solid defence, keeping six clean sheets in their current winning streak and conceding only three goals.

"I had said a long while back we would put in a crazy effort without looking at one competition or the other, just trying to achieve our best," Inzaghi said.

Inzaghi basked in the glory of his team's victory over Milan, a fourth successive win over their city rivals. Milan had not suffered four defeats in a single campaign against Inter since the 1973-74 season.

"They showed strength, determination, aggression, concentration, they were wonderful," he said. "We played four derbies since January and won all four, we know Milan are the Champions of Italy and have huge quality, but the players were excellent and deserve to enjoy this