While both
teams are worthy of a spot in the Champions League final, Bayern Munich
and Inter Milan were not the betting favourites back in September when
the Champions League began play.But on Saturday the two darkhorse finalists will meet at the Santiago Bernabéu in Madrid to decide which team will succeed 2009/10 champion Barcelona as Europe's top club.
Rogers
Sportsnet will show the 2010 Champions League final between Bayern
Munich and Inter Milan on Saturday, May 22 at 2:30 p.m. (ET) on all
Sportsnet HD channels.
Here is a quick look at who and what might decide the final.
Inter Milan (Two-time winners: 1963/64, 1964/65)The confident Inter are without a doubt a reflection of manager Jose Mourinho, who in the lead up to the final was quoted as saying that the Champions League final is bigger than the World Cup.
"If you hold it to be important, you have to transmit that to the players," Mourinho said.
The Portuguese tactician is no stranger to success in Europe. In 2004 he won the Champions League with FC Porto, knocking off English giant Manchester United along the way.
Top scorer: Diego Milito (Argentina)
Milito's best match came in the first-leg of the semi-final against Barcelona, when the Argentine scored a goal and assisted on the other two in a 3-1 decision. The four goals scored by Milito is one better than Wesley Sneijder, who registered three.
Player to watch: Mario Balotelli (Italy)
Widely considered a loose cannon, when Balotelli decides he wants to play the teenage striker can be lethal. Mourinho will likely deploy Balotelli as a late substitute, especially if Samuel Eto'o or Milito are unable to crack the opposition back four.
Experience matters: Javier Zanetti, Maicon, Lucio & Walter Samuel
The back four of Inter Milan made life miserable for Barcelona in the semi-final and will try to do the same against the tireless Ivica Olic, who scored a hat trick in Bayern's demolition of Lyon in the other semi-final. Mourinho has done a fine job of keeping the four defenders together and comfortable, as Lucio's 11 appearances is just one shy of the 12 held by Maicon, Zanetti & Samuel.
Bayern Munich (Four-time winners: 1973/74,
1974/75, 1975/76, 2000/01)Top scorer: Ivica Olic (Croatia)
Olic is a tireless north and south striker who has displayed a calm finish in front of the net this year. The Croatian is in the form of his life heading in to the final and with seven goals to date has a chance to seize the scorers' crown.
"It looks good, doesn't it?" he said after defeating Lyon. "Messi, Ronaldo, Olic – not bad."
Player to watch: Arjen Robben (Holland)
With four goals in the last five matches, the back four of Inter Milan will need to pay close attention to Robben. A left-footed forward who likes to roam, Robben scored arguably the goal of the torunament to finish off Manchester United in the quarter-finals. If there is any added incentive for the Dutchman, the chance to win Europe's top club honour in a city that cast him aside would be it.
Missing in the middle: Franck Ribery suspended for the final
The engine of the Bayern midfield will be forced to operate without Ribery, who will miss the final after being sent off in the semi-final. The vision and playmaking ability of Ribery is irreplaceable, but as mentioned above, the current form of Robben might be enough to make fans forget.
| TEAM ROSTERS FOR SATURDAY, MAY 22, 2010 : BAYERN MUNICH VS. INTER MILAN | |
 |
 |
| GOALKEEPERS | GOALKEEPERS |
|
1 Michael Rensing 22 Jörg Butt 35 Thomas Kraft |
1 Francesco Toldo 12 Júlio César 21 Paolo Orlandoni 51 Vid Belec |
| DEFENDERS | DEFENDERS |
|
5 Daniel Van Buyten 6 Martín Demichelis 13 Andreas Görlitz 21 Philipp Lahm 24 Stefan Schürf 26 Diego Contento 28 Holger Badstuber 30 Christian Lell 37 Björn Kopplin | 2 Iván Córdoba 4 Javier Zanetti 6 Lucio 13 Maicon 23 Marco Materazzi 25 Walter Samuel 26 Cristian Chivu 39 Davide Santon 46 Luca Caldirola |
| MIDFIELDERS | MIDFIELDERS |
|
7 Franck Ribéry 8 Hamit Alt?ntop 10 Arjen Robben 17 Mark van Bommel 23 Danijel Pranjic 27 David Alaba 31 Bastian Schweinsteiger 32 *Mehmet Ekici 44 Anatoliy Tymoshchuk |
5 Dejan Stankovic 7 Ricardo Quaresma 8 Thiago Motta 10 Wesley Sneijder 11 Sulley Muntari 15 René Krhin 19 Esteban Cambiasso 20 Joel Chukwuma Obi 52 Antonio Esposito 53 Luca Tremolada |
| FORWARDS | FORWARDS |
|
11 Ivica Olic 18 Miroslav Klose 25 Thomas Müller 29 Saër Sène 33 Mario Gómez |
9 Samuel Eto'o 17 MacDonald Mariga 22 Diego Milito 27 Goran Pandev 45 Mario Balotelli 49 Mattia Destro 89 Marko Arnautovic |