Real Madrid face a double challenge on Saturday in the Champions League final as theyll try to beat a rock-solid Atletico Madrid team and also overcome the curse of the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza.
Los Blancos have a grand total of zero wins in their previous 14 trips to Milan, not the most promising track record entering the season decider.
Milan is the city to have hosted the Spanish giants most often in all European competitions, ahead of Munichs 12.
No matter the competition name – Champions League, UEFA Cup or the extinct Cup Winners Cup – victory has avoided the team presided over by Florentino Perez.
Madrid have failed to win against either AC Milan or Inter, accumulating a bleak goal difference – six scored, 21 against.The most lopsided defeat in Los Blancos European history was a 5-0 demolition on April 19, 1989, at the hands of Arrigo Sacchis Milan.
The ‘Quinta del Buitre’ group, then coached by Leo Beenhakker, was easily dismantled by one of the best teams in football history, featuring the likes of Franco Baresi, Paolo Maldini, Carlo Ancelotti, Marco Van Basten, Ruud Gullit and Frank Rijkaard.
Individually speaking, Cristiano Ronaldo is both winless and scoreless in his three previous matches at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, one of the few stadiums where the Portuguese hasnt celebrated a goal.
Gareth Bale, contrarily, is fond of the Milan pitch – a hat-trick there as a Tottenham Hotspur full-back in 2010 brought the Welshman into the international spotlight.
As for the other member of the BBC, Karim Benzema scored a goal to help Madrid to a draw, although he had previously lost while still playing for Olympique Lyonnais.
Luka Modric or Pepe had no luck with their previous teams at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza either, whereas Mateo Kovacics wins arent a surprise as he played for Inter.
Zinedine Zidane can’t boast a great resume in Milan either, as he only obtained one victory during a five-season stint as a Juventus player, although it was a dominant 6-1 triumph over Silvio Berlusconis team.
In the coaching head-to-head, Zidanes Juventus and Diego Pablo Simeones Inter faced off on four ccasions as Serie A players, winning one apiece and drawing twice.
The Argentinian won the lone game as coaches, last February at Estadio Santiago Bernabeu. Theyll meet each other again on Saturday on what may eventually develop into a classic rivalry.
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