After years of turmoil, Milan teams back in European elite

First came a return to the top of Italian soccer, now comes a chance to reach the Champions League final. The Milan teams are back.

But only one will get the op‐ portunity to compete for Euro‐ pean soccer's top prize as AC Milan faces city rival Inter Milan in the semifinals of the Champi‐ ons League.

The victor will face either Real Madrid or Manchester City in the final.

Three‐time European cham‐ pion Inter was the last Italian club to lift the trophy, when it won an unprecedented treble of the league, Italian Cup and Champions League under José Mourinho in 2010.

Milan won the last of its seven titles in 2007.

"To be part of a club like this is a dream," Milan defender Fikayo Tomori said in an inter‐ view with The Associated Press. "To go and play in the San Siro, seeing it on the Champions League nights … it's such an iconic stadium, such an iconic sort of club.

"The fact that two Italian teams are in the semifinals ... it's obviously good for the league, good for Italian football. We're obviously focusing on us. We want to be the best."

Milan hosts Inter on Wednes‐ day before the return leg the following Tuesday. Both games will be at the San Siro as the teams share the stadium.

"We got two really exciting games coming up," Tomori said. "Two games that we can really show ourselves, prove our‐ selves and you know, we can hopefully add to the history of this club."

Since the Milan teams' last tri‐ umphs in Europe there have been slumps on the field and turmoil off it, with both clubs changing ownership several times and coaches even more frequently.

However, after years of medi‐ ocrity, Inter and Milan ended lengthy waits for a Serie A title before finally making it back to the top level of European soc‐ cer.