DIDI HAMANN: Liverpool went to Istanbul knowing everything had to go perfectly for us to beat the mighty AC Milan. This time round it’s Inter who will need the ‘miracle’, rather than Man City, who deserve to lift the trophy
My former club Manchester City don’t need another ‘Miracle of Istanbul’ to bring home the Champions League, as we at Liverpool did in 2005.
City deserve to lift the trophy because they’ve clearly been the best team in Europe this season. Over two legs, they’re practically unbeatable and, while it’s not impossible for Inter Milan to win a one-off game, I’d be surprised.
Having Erling Haaland next to them must give the City players incredible belief because he can score out of nothing and at the back Ruben Dias has been as important as Virgil van Dijk is to Liverpool.
City have gone from being leaky in big games to having the best defence in the Premier League.
It’s a crazy coincidence that the first Champions League final in Istanbul for 18 years again features an English club against opponents from Milan.
Man City won the FA Cup on Saturday and are now set to take on Inter Milan in the Champions League final next weekend as they vie to claim a historic treble
Dietmar Hamann (left) says Man City will not need a ‘miracle’ in Istanbil like his Liverpool side did in 2005
Hamann (right) who also played for City, believes the Citizens deserve to win the Champions League
I’ll be working on the game from a TV studio in Germany and I’m sure I’ll get goosebumps watching events at the Ataturk Stadium because it was the most famous club game I played in.
Coming on at half-time 3-0 down to AC Milan and helping Liverpool win the cup on penalties is something I’m extremely proud of.
Liverpool were underdogs that night, just as Inter are now. AC Milan were the best team in the world at that time, with stars like Paolo Maldini, Alessandro Nesta, Andrea Pirlo, Andriy Shevchenko and Hernan Crespo.
But we had a fantastic team spirit — as City have now — and although Inter have good players, I’m not sure they have the equivalent of Steven Gerrard. People know my Liverpool connections but I also spent three years at City between 2006 and 2009, a transformative time.
We fought relegation in my first season with Stuart Pearce. Things began to improve under Sven Goran Eriksson, when Vedran Corluka, Martin Petrov and Elano were signed to join the homegrown youngsters, Stephen Ireland, Micah Richards and Nedum Onuoha. And then it really took off.
My last season coincided with the Abu Dhabi takeover. It was mad. Robinho, one of the most sought-after players in the world at that time, signed on their first day.
What’s happened since is fantastic. Spending money helps but is no guarantee of success. City were smart enough to keep a lot of the staff even from my time so they could retain their identity.
Paul Webster (physio) stayed 12 years until 2016 and Vicky Kloss (communications) was there for 21 years until 2022.
Pep Guardiola’s (middle front) side have been imperious this season claiming the league and cup double
Ilkay Gundogan (pictured) netted a brace of goals to help City claim a 2-1 win against Man Utd
Erling Haaland (pictured) has been pivotal for City this season, scoring 52 goals in all competitions on his debut Premier League season
Danny Wilson (operations) is still there, as is first-team support manager Clare Marsden. People like that ensure everyone who works at City, including newer arrivals, understand how special the club are.
On the pitch, better players like Vincent Kompany, Pablo Zabaleta and Nigel De Jong had started to arrive by the time I left in 2009.
Standards were being raised and the younger ones like Micah Richards knew they had to improve if they wanted to be part of it.
In terms of the Champions League, City have had some near misses. Inter will be awkward opponents but I hope and expect them to do it. We went to Istanbul knowing everything had to go perfectly for us to beat the mighty Milan. This time round it’s Inter who will need the ‘miracle’, rather than City.
