José Mourinho and Inter Milan will meet again in Madrid, this time at the stadium where they reached the summit of European football together in 2010.
The Portuguese coach, however, arrives at the Bernabéu under pressure. After an encouraging start to his remarkable second spell in charge of Real Madrid, his side suffered a damaging defeat in Seville on Friday despite dominating much of the match. Barcelona have already begun to pull away.
Inter, meanwhile, arrive with confidence and momentum. Their victory over Napoli has provided another surge of adrenaline ahead of the opening stages of the Champions League, turning what might otherwise be a reunion filled with nostalgia into a highly competitive encounter.
The Bernabéu has changed considerably since that unforgettable night on May 22, 2010. The stadium has undergone a major renovation, transforming its internal layout and many of the corridors and rooms that Mourinho and his players would have known.
Yet it is difficult not to imagine the former coach and his old club crossing paths before the match. They have seen each other many times since Mourinho left, but never quite like this: back inside the stadium where they reached the highest point possible together, before immediately going their separate ways.
A love story at the top
The relationship between Mourinho and Inter was more than a successful partnership. It was a genuine love story, built around the feeling that almost nothing was beyond them.
That Inter side repeatedly produced moments that seemed impossible. They scored twice against Dynamo Kyiv in stoppage time, defeated Chelsea at Stamford Bridge and survived with 10 men against Barcelona in the first leg of their semi-final.
Opponents could attack, dominate and throw everything they had at them. Somehow, Inter simply refused to break.
It was a period when setbacks seemed almost incapable of hurting them.
Mourinho’s later relationship with Roma produced its own emotional highs, but it was a different kind of story. There was passion, excitement and an intense connection with the supporters, yet both sides perhaps understood that they could not reach the same heights.
With Inter, there appeared to be no ceiling.
That extraordinary journey ended at the Bernabéu, where Inter defeated Bayern Munich 2-0 to win the Champions League and complete a historic treble. Mourinho then left the club, knowing that returning to Milan with the victorious squad would make it even harder to walk away.
One of the defining images of that night was Mourinho embracing a tearful Marco Materazzi in the Bernabéu garage before leaving. His documentary later brought the scene back to the forefront.
Sixteen years without an Italian winner
The 2010 final remains painfully significant for Italian football.
It is still the last time an Italian club won the Champions League. Sixteen years have now passed, extending what is unfortunately a record gap for Serie A clubs. Before this period, the longest wait between Italian victories in the competition had been 15 years.
Italian clubs have come close since then. They have reached four finals, including Juventus’ defeats by Barcelona in Berlin and Real Madrid in Cardiff, as well as Inter’s more recent loss to Manchester City in Istanbul.
The Berlin final in 2015 offered a particularly tantalising moment, with Juventus and Barcelona level at 1-1 deep into the second half before the game slipped away.
Then came Istanbul in 2023. Rodri’s goal proved decisive, despite Inter mounting a late assault and City being forced into an increasingly desperate defensive effort.
It was not to be.
But being reminded that Serie A is now the longest-standing member of Europe’s traditional top five leagues without a Champions League winner inevitably leaves a bitter taste.
Old faces, new battle
Mourinho is likely to encounter several familiar faces in Madrid.
Javier Zanetti will be in the directors’ box, while Cristian Chivu will occupy the opposing technical area. Alexandar Stankovic, son of former Inter midfielder Dejan Stankovic, will also be among the players passing in front of Mourinho as they head out to warm up.
There may also be familiar television personalities and old acquaintances, now a little greyer or heavier than they were in 2010, offering the inevitable joke that neither side has aged quite as badly as expected.
The circumstances are very different from that night in May. This is September, not June, and the Champions League final is still months away, scheduled for June 5.
But the setting could hardly be more evocative.
Mourinho returns to the Bernabéu with Real Madrid, while Inter return to the scene of the greatest night of their modern history.
There is rivalry, there is memory and there is unfinished business.
The table is set for a very special Champions League night.
Whoever wins will enjoy the feast. Whoever loses will be left with the feeling of having been served.
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