According to reports, Barcelona and Inter Milan have faced each other in 16 European matches: four games in the European Cup last century and 12 games in the Champions League this century. One of the bitterest memories for Barcelona from these encounters dates back to the semi-finals of the 2009-2010 season, when Pep Guardiola’s team, the defending champions, were eliminated by José Mourinho’s Inter. In the first leg in Milan, Inter won 3-1 (goals from Sneijder, Maicon, Diego Milito/Pedro), and in the return leg at Camp Nou, Barcelona’s 1-0 victory (Piqué’s goal) was not enough to advance.

The first leg at San Siro was full of problems for Barcelona. After a tough derby against Espanyol (0-0) on April 17 with controversial refereeing by Undiano Mallenco, Barcelona players had to travel 1,060 kilometers by bus to Milan on Sunday due to the eruption of the Eyjafjallajökull volcano in Iceland, which caused the biggest disruption in European aviation history.

This journey, with an overnight stop in Cannes, France, took a total of 23 hours and 35 minutes. But that was not the end of the problems. Referee Olegário Benquerença, the Portuguese referee and friend of Mourinho, was heavily criticized. Diego Milito’s offside goal was confirmed, dubious penalties on Dani Alves and Gerard Piqué were not called, and Inter’s rough play went unpunished. Luís Figo, Barcelona’s longtime enemy due to his controversial transfer to Real Madrid and coincidentally a compatriot of Mourinho and Benquerença, was present on the sidelines as Inter’s temporary representative, and in Barcelona, this match became known as the “Portuguese Robbery.”

In the return leg, the electric atmosphere at Camp Nou pushed Barcelona to attack, but Piqué’s goal in the 83rd minute, despite Inter being down to 10 men (Motta sent off in the 28th minute), came too late. In extra time, Belgian referee Frank De Bleeckere disallowed a goal by Bojan due to a non-existent handball by Yaya Touré. Mourinho celebrated the victory by running onto the pitch under the sprinklers turned on by Barcelona, while Barça goalkeeper Víctor Valdés clashed violently with him.

This is not Barcelona’s only regret against Inter. In the 2021-2022 season, Xavi’s Barça failed against Inter in the group stage and dropped to the Europa League. In the first leg in Milan, Inter won 1-0 with a goal from Hakan Çalhanoğlu. Slovenian referee Slavko Vinčić, with the help of Dutch VAR, ignored a clear penalty on Denzel Dumfries in the 92nd minute, and a goal by Pedri was disallowed due to a non-existent handball by Ansu Fati. In the return leg, a 3-3 draw at Camp Nou (Dembélé and Lewandowski (2)/Barella, Lautaro, Gosens) sealed Barça’s fate.

Overall, Barcelona leads with 8 wins, 5 draws, and 3 wins for Inter in 16 matches. But in knockout stages, Inter leads 2-1. This encounter is an opportunity for Barcelona to avenge that bitter and controversial defeat and face Inter with extra motivation.