Can Inter's defense propel them to an upset Champions League title vs. PSG? How Simone Inzaghi's side press

If Inter are to overcome the odds and win the Champions League final it seems inevitable that their defense will have a big say in it. If matters go right for Simone Inzaghi, however, that won't mean going right in the same way it did in the semifinal, where miraculous Yann Sommer saves kept Barcelona at bay. Instead Inter will be looking to ensure the ball never gets that far.

Inter's off ball shape might just be the ace in the hole that swings the tie in their favor. How will it set up? Well that is what makes them so impressive. It really is hard to say.

Take the opening exchanges in the second leg against Barcelona. Inzaghi begins with some of the most aggressive pressing Inter have deployed at any stage in the competition so far, pushing his wing backs up high against their opposing full backs, trusting that his wide central defenders can win their duels against Lamine Yamal and Raphinha.

In the image above Henrikh Mkhitaryan tracks the run towards the ball of Frenkie De Jong, futher discouraging a pass that Marcus Thuram is already protecting against. Federico Dimarco has hurtled up the field to shut out the pass that Pau Cubarsi eventually has to settle for, sideways to Eric Garcia. Had Barcelona not gone that avenue it would probably have been a case of forcing the ball back to Wojciech Szczesny, who will then go long towards Ferran Torres and a duel he is unlikely to win against Francesco Acerbi.

Crucial to making this all work is Nicolo Barella. His dynamism allows him to cover for either striker when they press Szczesny, blocking out both the quick pass to the center back and shielding the pass to De Jong. Across both legs he functioned as something akin to an off-ball poacher. Even in a still image from a television camera that is emphatically not on his face, you can see the glint in his eye when Pedri gets played the ball in a difficult position with his back to him.

It is easy to see how the aggression they displayed against Barcelona might be an approach they look to replicate against a Paris Saint-Germain side who will look to play through the line. It would, however, be no small gamble. Barcelona's wide escape routes in the San Siro were Eric Garcia, a center back shunted out of position, and Gerard Martin, an impressive young full back, but not quite Alejandro Balde.

For PSG that will be Nuno Mendes and Achraf Hakimi, both among the two or three best players in the world in their position. When Denzel Dumfries sat deeper in the second leg, attempting to ease the load of Yann Aurel Bisseck against Raphinha, Martin was able to flex his muscles, providing two assists. Imagine the damage Mendes might do, or Hakimi on the opposite flank.

Then again, Inter don't have to play this way. Certainly they are very prepared to dial back their press; across the course of the competition their passes per defensive action (a measure of pressing intensity) is 15.7, some way below the average. If they need to park the bus that is exactly what they will do.

Pep Guardiola explained as much right back at the start of the Champions League campaign, before his side were held to a 0-0 draw at the Etihad Stadium. "They have good high pressing and go man to man... and after they defend with typical Italian mentality that they have to suffer." On occasions the suffering can turn into masochism and certainly it was more luck than last man defending that saw them keep a clean sheet against Manchester City though.

Still, this is a team that can survive under great pressure in their box. Of the 36 teams from the league phase, only nine allowed their opponents more than 30 penalty box touches per game. Inter and Feyenoord are the only ones of those to have sniffed the knockout stages proper. While that number is naturally buoyed by the meetings with Barcelona and Bayern Munich, this is a team that feels perfectly at home when it collapses into its box.

Right the way through the competition, Inter have been prepared to trust their shot blockers. Ten times Arsenal's effort hit a black and blue shirt. Bayern were denied eight times at the San Siro and even Young Boys were able to make Yann Aurel Bisseck and company hurl themselves in front of seven of their efforts. With the outstanding Yann Sommer behind them, Inter can bunker down if the occasion calls for it.

You wouldn't want to rely on it for 90 minutes, much like Inzaghi would not want to gamble that his players can chase PSG across the Allianz Arena for an hour and a half. With a little from Column A and a sprinkling of Column B though, Inter might have the swing factor on this biggest of occasions.