On Sunday afternoon, Milan and Inter are set to clash heads once again in a derby that will determine the leader of the Serie A table.
During the last decade, the Derby della Madonnina’s status unfortunately declined into a mere sideshow.
Although the fans of both sides would always be eagerly anticipating the opportunity to put one over their fierce rivals, a derby win would often feel as a consolation prize during another underwhelming season.
Long were gone the days of Jose Mourinho’s treble winning Inter, and Carlo Ancelotti’s European conquering Milan.
With Juventus at the heights of their powers, while Roma and Napoli occasionally trying to mount a timid Scudetto challenge, the two Milanese giants were struggling to reach the European spots.
The Milan derby had became a “hipster” favorite for the fans of European football. It was a chance for the lovers of nostalgia to tune in and remember the days when Paolo Maldini and Javier Zanetti used to shake hands before the kickoff, instead of Riccardo Montolivo and Andrea Ranocchia.
Nonetheless, the eyes of the football world turned into other directions.
From the derby of Madrid who became a much closer encounter after the resurgence of Diego Simeone’s Atletico, to the Manchester derby which played as a title decider at times, all the way through the countless London clashes, all these fixtures had became much more engaging than the battle between two fallen Italian clubs.
But you know what they say, bad times don’t last forever.
Thankfully for calcio fans, the Italian league is on an uprising spearheaded by the two wakening giants.
Although Sunning Group and Elliott Management do have their faults, they have so far helped their clubs in restoring some of their previous strengths. The way is still a long one but this season is proving to be a major progress.
Milan were leading the Serie A table since the beginning of the season, but a shocking defeat at the hands of Spezia last weekend saw them leapfrogged by Inter.
With just one point separating the two giants, and two of the world’s biggest strikers – Romelu Lukaku and Zlatan Ibrahimovic – set to rekindle their unfriendly rivalry once again, the script couldn’t be written any better for this one.
With all due respect for the derbies of Manchester, Madrid and all the rest of Europe, no clash can replicate the magic and the glamour of the Derby della madonnina, and fans of European football will undoubtedly rejoice to witness the resurgence of this old clash between two of the world’s biggest clubs.