Inter dominates Milan in Champions League semi-final: Player ratings

Inter is on the verge of their first Champions League final since 2010 after an impressive 2-0 victory over their city rivals AC Milan in the first leg of their semi-final at San Siro. Goals from Edin Dzeko and Henrikh Mkhitaryan in the early stages of the game gave Inter the edge and could have easily scored more in the remainder of the match. Milan will have to work hard in the second leg to overturn the deficit.

Dzeko scored the first goal in the eighth minute, outsmarting Davide Calabria at Hakan Calhanoglu's in-swinging corner and striking a left-footed volley into the net. Inter continued their dominance when Federico Dimarco passed the ball to Mkhitaryan who had only Mike Maignan to beat for their second goal of the match.

Calhanoglu missed a chance to put Inter on the scoreboard for the third time when he struck the inside of the post, but Mkhitaryan kept the chance alive and had a shot on goal that was saved by Maignan, with Barella missing the rebound.

Milan suffered an injury setback inside 20 minutes when Ismael Bennacer was forced off. Lautaro Martinez appeared to be clipped by Simon Kjaer, and a penalty was initially awarded but later revoked following a VAR intervention. Milan managed to warm up but struggled to create chances throughout the game.

Despite coming close a few times, Milan lacked quality and were unable to score. Andre Onana remained a spectator for the most part of the game as Inter's defense contained Olivier Giroud and prevented Milan from making a comeback. Stefani Pioli will need to work harder in the second leg to gain momentum and bring home a victory.

The following are the ratings for the players:

GK: Mike Maignan - 7/10

RB: Davide Calabria (c) - 4/10

CB: Simon Kjaer - 5/10

CB: Fikayo Tomori - 4/10

LB: Theo Hernandez - 5/10

CM: Rade Krunic - 4/10

CM: Sandro Tonali - 5/10

RM: Brahim Diaz - 6/10

AM: Ismael Bennacer - N/A

LM: Alexis Saelemaekers - 6/10

ST: Olivier Giroud - 5/10

SUB: Junior Messias (18' for Bennacer) - 6/10

SUB: Malick Thiaw (59' for Kjaer) - 7/10

SUB: Divock Origi (60' for Saelemaekers) - 6/10

SUB: Tommaso Pobega (82' for Diaz) - 6/10

SUB: Pierre Kalulu (82' for Calabria) - 6/10

Stefani Pioli - 6/10

GK: Andre Onana - 6/10

CB: Matteo Darmian - 6/10

CB: Francesco Acerbi - 7/10

CB: Alessandro Bastoni - 7/10 - Carried the ball out of defence really well, like an extra midfielder.

RM: Denzel Dumfries - 6/10 - Didn't see that much of the ball.

CM: Nicolo Barella - 7/10 - Put the hard yards in and was consistently invovled in Inter attacks.

CM: Hakan Calhanoglu - 8/10 - Controlled things from the middle of the pitch and unlucky not to score himself with a thunderous strike that hit the post.

CM: Henrikh Mkhitaryan - 8/10 - Rolled back the years with the way he took his goal.

LM: Federco Dimarco - 7/10 - Pace made him a great outlet and he made the Inter second.

ST: Edin Dzeko - 8/10 - Showed his strength when he broke the deadlock. Always a danger.

ST: Lautaro Martinez - 7/10 - Looked sharp darting in and around the Milan defenders and midfielders.

SUB: Marcelo Brozovic (63' for Mkhitaryan) - 6/10

SUB: Romelu Lukaku (70' for Dzeko) - 6/10

SUB: Stefan de Vrij (71' for Dimarco) - 6/10

SUB: Joaquin Correa (78' for Martinez) - 6/10

SUB: Roberto Gagliardini (78' for Calhanoglu) - 5/10

Simone Inzaghi - 8/10 - Played it right and his team executed the gameplan perfectly.