Goals from Edin Dzeko and Henrikh Mkhitaryan put Inter Milan in firm control of their Champions League semi-final following their 2-0 victory over AC Milan at the San Siro on Wednesday evening.

Thanks to early goals from Edin Dzeko and Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Inter has the upper hand heading into Tuesday’s second leg of the biggest Milan derby in a generation.

At the San Siro, Simone Inzaghi’s team were deserving winners after creating the majority of scoring opportunities and barely allowing Milan a shot on goal.

Inter could have won by a larger margin, as Hakan Calhanoglu hit the post and Edin Dzeko missed a golden opportunity early in the second half, but they are still heavy favourites to reach the final of Europe’s premier club competition for the first time in 13 years.

In 2003 and 2005, Inter was eliminated in the quarterfinals and semifinals by Milan. If Inter were to reach the final, it would avenge those losses.

The champion will face either Real Madrid or Manchester City in the final on June 10 in Istanbul. Tuesday’s first leg of the semifinal was tied 1-1 in Spain.

Milan, who also hit the post through Sandro Tonali, have their work cut out for them if they want to be crowned European champions for the eighth time, and they will be hoping Rafael Leao is available for next week’s decisive match.

The absence of star player Leao deprived Milan of their primary attacking threat, allowing Inter to play more aggressively knowing that their opponents lacked the Portugal winger’s speed.

Photo by EPA/ROBERTO BREGANI