Yes, Inter can win the Champions League Final

It is not nearly the long shot many make it out to be

(Note: This article will be free after 1:00 pm ET on June 10)

The coronation is interrupted. England’s second-ever treble winner has to wait. Manchester City has lost to Inter. Surprised…

Not me. Though I would personally devastated if this happened.

Let me remind folks I am a decades long Manchester City fan who has suffered through multiple relegations with the club. I have even written a book about my fandom and journey with the club though it’s horribly dated now having been completed in late 2013.

So why do I think Inter can win?

First off, Simeone Inzaghi doesn’t lose finals as a Manager. He’s won seven finals in a row at Lazio and Inter - two clubs who haven’t exactly been always humming at the top of Italian football the last decade. He’s a winner and unlike the new wave of Italian coaches that play a eye-pleasing style, Inzaghi is a pragmatist. (On this note, I plan a future post on how Italian managers are once again changing tactics in global football)

Secondly, Manchester City’s new formation, effectively a 3-box-3 will have a very hard time in my opinion against Inter’s somewhat fluid 5-3-2. While City will dominate possession, Inter have the ability to break quickly and will have a combination of two strikers (two of Dzeko, Lukaku and Martinez) that forces City’s back three to defend in numbers and potentially peels John Stones out of the midfield.