For Pep Guardiola and Manchester City, it is the crowning glory, the ultimate prize to sign off a spectacular treble winning season into the history books.
Internazionale Milan were faultless on the night, pushing Manchester City further than many expected before the first whistle. For a fourth consecutive season, European football's most prestigious trophy is settled by a 1-0 scoreline.
In a game which saw Erling Haaland and Kevin de Bruyne square off against the likes of Lautaro Martinez it was arguably both shot stoppers who put in the outstanding performances. Andre Onana was majestical in possession; Ederson clinched the trophy with a title-winning last gasp save. It was far from a vintage City performance by their exuberant standards, with a certain crispness lacking in possession, the domination sparingly exerted and uncharacteristic mistakes revealing a definite anxiety.
With a first ever European cup looming, and a treble ninety minutes away, City were fingertips away from immortality and Rodri went ahead and clamped his hand firmly on the prized trophy, expertly guiding the ball past Onana after an intricate move down City's right to produce the match winning moment. City lacked tempo and aggression, Inter stifled them at every turn, yet it was an otherworldly performance from John Stones, striding into midfield and producing a world class display likened to Lionel Messi's contributions of the past decades.
It would be wholeheartedly unfair not to handsomely praise Simone Inzaghi and Inter for a tactically superb performance, with Federico Dimarco and Romelu Lukaku coming unbelievably close to levelling the game late on. Inter troubled City's rhythm all game long and can consider the scoreline unlucky yet it is all about Manchester City's victory.
No manager has won two trebles, and Pep Guardiola may have firmly etched his name as the greatest manager of all time, displaying supreme flexibility and adaptability and creating an all-conquering side arguably the greatest of his illustrious career.
City clung on with everything they had...
The triumphant trophy lift and the outpour of emotion well deserved for the best team in Europe this season...
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