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#5 Inter Milan vs. Bayern Munich – Final, 2009-10
After the way their victory over Barcelona in the semi-finals had been celebrated, plenty of people would’ve been forgiven for assuming Inter Milan had already won the 2009-10 Champions League – but of course, there was still one final test for them to pass: a showdown with Bayern Munich in the final, with Mourinho facing off against one of his earliest mentors in the form of legendary Dutch boss Louis Van Gaal.
Bayern had been largely irresistible during their Champions League campaign that season, beating Fiorentina, Manchester United and Lyon en route to the final and calling upon the talents of proven world-class performers like Philipp Lahm, Bastian Schweinsteiger and Arjen Robben. But like Barcelona before them, the Bavarian giants ran into a brick wall in the form of Mourinho’s Nerazzurri.
After a quick start from Inter saw them launch a couple of attacks, the game was largely dominated by Bayern – who enjoyed 68% possession and had 21 shots on goal – but try as they might, they simply could not score. Inter’s attacking force, meanwhile, seemed completely absent – until they launched a counter-attack 10 minutes before half-time, with Wesley Sneijder linking up with Diego Milito to set up a nicely clipped goal for the Argentine.
Bayern came out strongly in the second half, but once again found themselves firmly repelled, and on 70 minutes, another counter-attack saw Milito turn past Mark Van Buyten before firing into the net to give Mourinho’s side a 2-0 lead. This time the sting was drawn from the game, and the Italian side settled down before confirming their victory.
The win gave Mourinho his second Champions League title – and most notably, his Inter side had beaten the champions of England, Spain and Germany along the way. The victory remains one of the most remarkable Champions League wins in recent years – and so who would bet against Mourinho pulling off one more before he’s done?
