10 January 1915 - That Was 15 More Than They Needed

On 10 January 1915, Inter recorded their largest margin of victory, beating Vicenza 16-0.

The meeting came in the semifinal group of the Northern Italian championship, with both Inter and Vicenza having won their qualification groups in impressive fashion--Vicenza won eight of their ten qualification group matches and Inter won nine of theirs (while compiling an astounding goal differential of +52).

Those results sent the teams into the same semifinal group, where Inter steamrolled Vicenza in Milan. Their 16-0 scoreline remains a club record. Vicenza did better in the return fixture, holding Inter to a scoreless draw, but Inter still managed to top the group and advance to the Northern Italy final group, where they finished third behind Genoa and Torino.

23 December 2009 - Apparently, It Did End There

On 23 December 2009, Lega Calcio resolved a lengthy dispute between Lazio forward Goran Pandev and his boss, club owner Claudio Lotito, by ordering the club to release Pandev and pay him €160,000.

The Macedonian international had played for Lazio since 2004 and had been a key performer for the Roman club, amassing a total of 60 goals in 177 appearances through the 2008-09 season--a season in which they won the Coppa Italia. But over the summer of 2009, with Pandev entering the last year of his contract, club and player drifted apart over Pandev's demands for a wage increase. When Lazio refused to accede to his demands, Pandev asked for a transfer.

The request incensed Lotito, who referred to the forward as a "rebel" and set a transfer fee at the improbably high amount of €19M. Zenit St. Petersburg approached the club with an offer for €13M, but could not reach an agreement. Meanwhile, Lazio refused to play Pandev and, at times, forced him to train on his own.

With the stalemate showing no signs of resolution, Pandev turned to the Italian league's governing body, Lega Calcio, claiming that Lazio's treatment was a breach of contract. The body agreed and, in their December order, commanded the club to release Pandev and pay him punitive damages. Lotito vowed to appeal, telling the press "I can only say that this doesn't end here."

It did end there, however, as Pandev signed with Inter just over two weeks later.

18 October 1908 - A Derby On Neutral Ground

On 18 October 1908, AC Milan and Inter played the first Milan derby. In Switzerland.

The match came just over seven months after Inter's formation. They had previously been part of AC Milan, but split in March 1908 over a dispute about the propriety of signing foreign players (Inter favored it, hence the adoption of "Internazionale" as their name).

The first meeting between the two clubs came in the Coppa Chiasso, a tournament played in the the Canton of Ticino in southern Switzerland. Milan won the first two editions, played in 1906 and 1907, which consisted of three and four teams, respectively. For the 1908 tournament, the field expanded to six teams, including the newly formed Inter. The two Milanese teams reached the final which Milan won 2-1.

Since then, the two clubs have met a total of 276 times, with Milan maintaining the edge with 109 wins to Inter's 95, with 72 draws.

16 September 1979 - A Good Day To Tie

On 16 September 1979, the Serie A season kicked off with eight matches, seven of which ended in draws.

Goals were at a premium that day, as eleven of the sixteen teams in action failed to find the net, resulting in five scoreless draws: Ascoli-Napoli, Avellino-Lazio, Cagliari-Torino, Perugia-Catanzaro, and Roma-Milan. The other ineffective attack came from Pescara, who were on the wrong end of the day's only unbalanced result, losing 2-0 to Inter.

There were also two score draws, both of which ended 1-1: Fiorentina-Udinese and Juventus-Bologna.

Other leagues have experienced similar days, with eight draws out of eleven English First Division matches on 10 September 1966 and eight draws out of ten matches in the thirteenth round of the Argentine Clausura (though the matches occurred over a period of three days). On a percentage basis, the record goes to Scotland, with draws in all six Premier Division matches played on 22 January 1994.

[Special thanks to the Guardian's John Ashdown for the information, published in his Knowledge column on 3 May 2011.]

15 September 1965 - It's True, Defense Wins Championships

On 15 September 1965, Inter won their second consecutive Intercontinental Cup, beating the same team they beat for their first one.

They won it the previous year over Argentina's Independiente, in both teams' first appearance in the competition. They split the first two legs before Inter clinched the title in a replay, winning 1-0 at the San Siro.

The same two teams met again in 1965. Inter won the first leg in convincing fashion, beating Independiente at the San Siro by the score of 3-0. At the time, the contest was decided on points, so an Independiente win by any score in the second leg would send the teams to another replay.

But under manager Helenio Herrera, Inter had mastered the defensive style known as catenaccio. And playing before a hostile crowd of 80,000 at La Doble Visera, they practiced it to perfection, shutting Independiente out for the fourth time in five meetings to claim their second title.

The 1965 victory was Inter's last appearance in the competition, while Independiente went on to win it in 1973 and 1984.

8 August 2009 - If They Had To Lose One, This Is The One They Would've Picked

On 8 August 2009, Lazio defeated Inter in the Supercoppa Italiana. As it turned out, it was the only competition Inter entered that season that they didn't win.

Established in 1988, the Suppercoppa Italiana pits the previous season's Serie A winners against the Coppa Italia holders. For 2009, those teams were Inter and Lazio, respectively. At the time, they both had won the competition four times and had even met in the 2000 edition, which Lazio won 4-3 (Inter participated that year as Coppa Italia runners-up, since Lazio had done the double the previous season).

Played at the Bird's Nest in Beijing, Inter looked the better of the two sides, with several close chances from new signing Samuel Eto'o. But Lazio were the ones to take the lead when their Brazilian midfielder Matuzalem knocked the ball home in the 63rd minute. They doubled their lead just three minutes later when captain Tommaso Rocchi (pictured) scored with a chip.

Eto'o finally found the back of the net in the 75th minute, but Diego Milito's apparent equalizer shortly afterward was ruled to be offside, so the match ended as a 2-1 Lazio victory. Inter earned some consolation, however, by winning that season's Serie A title, as well as the Coppa Italia and the Champions League.

10 July 1949 - Inter's Italian Invasion

On 10 July 1949, Inter Milan opened their North American tour with an 8-2 win over the New York Stars at Randall's Island. It was the first of a six-match itinerary in the United States and Canada that ended with six Inter victories.

Led by captain Aldo Campatelli, Inter were coming off a second-place finish in the 1948-49 Serie A season, helped by the performances of István Nyers and Amedeo Amadei, who had finished as league's highest and second-highest scorers with 26 goals and 22 goals, respectively.

As evidenced by the eight goals they put past the New York Stars, Inter's offensive power proved too much for the North American teams, all of whom were all-star sides put together for the tour. The Italians followed that performance with five more victories; 12-4 over Kearny-Philadelphia, 5-0 over the American League Stars, 9-3 over the Montreal Stars, 5-1 over the U.S. Stars, and--in their closest match of the tour--4-2 over the Philadelphia Stars.

After returning to Italy, Inter recorded another second-place league finish in 1951, then won the league in 1953 and 1954. Soon afterward, manager Helenio Herrera arrived to usher the club into their Grande Inter phase, winning seven trophies between 1963 and 1966, including the 1964 and 1965 European Cups.

31 May 2009 - Capo Di Tutti Capocannoniere

On 31 May 2009, Inter striker Zlatan Ibrahimović's 81st-minute backheel on Serie A's last day won the match and made him the season's top scorer.

Playing at home against mid-table Atalanta, Inter had already secured their fourth consecutive Scudetto (including the 2006 title, awarded to Inter after being stripped from Juventus due to a bribery scandal), starting the day 10 points clear of second-place finisher AC Milan.

The match began with a flurry of goals. Inter went ahead early with a Sulley Muntary goal in the 6th minute. But Atalanta's Cristiano Doni headed his team level four minutes later. Two minutes after that, Ibrahimović got onto the scoresheet, slipping behind the Atalanta defense to retrieve a lobbed ball and powering it low past keeper Andrea Consigli. The lead did not last long, however, as Luca Cigarini provided another equalizer for Atalanta in the 25th minute.

In the second half, Doni scored again--this time from a 25-yard free kick--to send the visitors ahead. Inter then equalized after an 80th-minute scramble in front of the Atalanta goal resulted in a driving shot from Esteban Cambiasso. Only one minute later, Ibrahimović, standing in front of the Atalanta goal, muscled a defender off the ball and slotted it home with a clever backheel.

In addition to securing the 4-3 victory, the goal was his 25th of the season, pushing him past Genoa's Diego Milito and Bologna's Marco Di Vaio--both of whom had 24--for the Capocannoniere as Serie A's top scorer.

20 April 2010 - The Third Time's The Charm For Inter

On 20 April 2010, Inter Milan scored against Barcelona for the first time in three matches that season, winning 3-1 in the opening leg of their semi-final match-up en route to winning the trophy.

The two teams met twice in the group stage, with the first match ending as a scoreless draw in Milan and the second as a 2-0 Barcelona victory at Camp Nou. Barcelona won the group, then advanced to the semi-finals over Stuttgart and Arsenal. Inter's path, meanwhile, went over manager José Mourinho's former club Chelsea and CSKA Moscow.

Playing before a crowd of 83,000 at the San Siro, Barcelona jumped to a first-half lead with a 19th-minute goal from Pedro, but Real Madrid cast-off Wesley Sneijder equalized in the 30th minute. Then, while playing a tenacious defensive game that stymied Barça playmaker Lionel Messi, Inter pushed ahead in the 48th minute--taking the ball from Messi and sending it up the pitch to Diego Milito, who then fed it to right back Maicon (pictured) to slot home.

Milito provided the day's final goal, knocking home Sneijder's misplaced header in the 61st minute. Barcelona poured forward, but Inter keeper Julio Cesar repeatedly denied their attempts on goal to secure the 3-1 victory.

Barça won the second leg 1-0, but Inter advanced by the aggregate score of 3-2 and went on to win their first European Cup/Champions League title since 1965.

24 November 2009 - For Once, The Commentator Really Was Blind

On 24 November 2009, the Guardian's Paul Doyle provided live commentary of a Champions League match despite missing the first 32 minutes.

The chief football writer for the Guardian website, Doyle was responsible for their minute-by-minute commentary of the Champions League group stage meeting between holders Barcelona and eventual champions Inter Milan. But just after the whistle, Doyle announced "The match has kicked off, or so I assume. My hi-tech TV has just crashed." It was still down when Barcelona scored the opening goal in the 10th minute, prompting Doyle to write "Word is there's been a goal by Barca--scored by Pique--but intense study of my blank screen does not offer up any clues as to how it came about. Brilliant." Some readers sent their own descriptions of the action to Doyle, while others suggested simply making stuff up. He also missed Barça going up 2-0 in the 26th minute, relying on Sky's Sports News Channel for word of the goal.

His TV was repaired by the 33rd minute, but with Barça's two-goal lead, there wasn't much to see. The holders passed the ball around Inter for the remainder of the match, winning comfortably. Inter did get their revenge in the semifinals, beating Barcelona 3-2 on their way to winning the tournament.

26 September 1990 - Bergkamp's International Career Takes Flight

On 26 September 1990, Dennis Bergkamp made his international debut for the Netherlands in a friendly against Italy. He would go on to become the Dutch national team's greatest goalscorer.

Bergkamp, a second striker (and renowned aviophobe), began his professional career four years earlier with Ajax, where he won the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup (1987) and the KNVB Cup (1987) before winning the Eredivisie in 1990. His performance that season won him the Dutch Football Talent of the Year and earned his his first cap for the Netherlands.

The Dutch lost that first match, 1-0 in Palermo, but Bergkamp developed into a prolific striker, scoring 37 goals in 79 international appearances - enough to make him the Netherlands' top scorer by the time of his international retirement in 2000 (though he was later surpassed by Patrick Kluivert). The Dutch failed to claim any major silverware during his tenure, but he earned an individual honor by winning the 1992 UEFA Euro golden boot. He also won silverware at the club level with Ajax, Inter, and especially Arsenal, where he won three Premier League titles and four FA Cups between 1995 and 2006.

13 September 1973 - A Born Leader

On 13 September 1973, future Italian World Cup-winning captain and 2006 FIFA World Player of the Year Fabio Cannavaro was born in Naples. A center back, he is the only defender in history to win that award.

Cannavaro got his start in 1988 with the Napoli youth team, then signed with the senior side in 1992. In 1995, he moved to Parma, where he rose to international prominence and won his first silverware - a 1999 treble consisting of the Coppa Italia, Supercoppa Italia, and UEFA Cup. That success prompted a €23 million transfer to Inter in the summer of 2002, but he stayed there only two seasons before moving to Juventus (2004-06).

In his two seasons at Juve, he won two Serie A titles, then followed that stint by captaining the Italian national team to the World Cup title. Cannavaro played every minute for the Azzurri, who conceded only two goals in the tournament (an own goal against the US and a penalty kick against France). For his efforts, he received the FIFA World Player of the Year Award.

After the World Cup, Cannavaro moved to Real Madrid for three seasons, which included two La Liga titles, then returned to Juventus in 2009. But his form began to suffer and, in 2010, the club decided not to renew his contract. He then shocked the footballing community by moving to Al-Ahli Dubai, his current club.

23 August 1910 - The Man From Milan

On 23 July 1910, future Italian legend Giuseppe Meazza was born in Milan. He would go on the become the Italian national team's greatest scorer and a two-time World Cup winner.

Meazza, who lost his father to the war in 1917, learned to play football barefoot on the streets of Milan. When he was 12, he began playing for local side Gloria FC and a fan bought him his first pair of football boots. He began his professional career in 1927 with Inter and was an immediate success, scoring a brace in his debut against Milanese Unione Sportiva. The following season, the first for Serie A, he scored 31 goals.

He remained with Inter for 13 seasons, winning three Serie A titles (1930, 1938, 1940) and one Coppa Italia (1939). During that period, he joined the Italian national team, earning his first cap in 1930 and winning back-to-back World Cups in 1934 and 1938. In all, he scored 33 goals for the Azzurri, making his the national team's leading scorer until the record was broken by Gigi Riva in 1973.

In 1940, he moved across town to Milan, where he played for two seasons. He later spent time with Juventus (1942-43), Varese (1944), and Atalanta (1945-46), before returning to Inter for one last season before retiring. He turned to management, starting with Atalanta, but also taking charge of Inter (on three separate occasions) and the Italian national team before retiring completely in 1957. He died in 1979 at the age of 68. The next year, Inter and Milan renamed their joint stadium after him.

1 August 1976 - Kanu Can Do

On 1 August 1976, future Nigerian striker Nwankwo Kanu was born in the city of Owerri. He would go on to become the most decorated African footballer in history.

Kanu made his professional debut in 1991 at the age of 16 for Nigerian First Division club Federation Works, scoring 20 goals in 35 appearances before moving to fellow Nigerian club Iwaunyanwu Nationale, now known as Heartland FC, in 2002. He won the Nigerian Premier League title in 1993, his first silverware.

He rose to international prominence in 1993, when he signed with Dutch side Ajax. There, he won three consecutive Eredivisie titles (1994, 1995, 1996) and the UEFA Champions League (1995). He left Ajax for Inter in the summer of 1996, after captaining Nigeria to the Olympic gold medal - a feat that earned him the 1996 African Footballer of the Year award. But a defective aortic valve limited his playing time with Inter and he moved to Arsenal in February 1999.

He resumed his successful streak at Arsenal, winning two Premier League titles (2002 and 2004) and two FA Cups (2002, 2003). But the emergence of Thierry Henry pushed Kanu to the bench and, dissatisfied with his reduced playing time, he moved to West Bromwich Albion in 2004. He spent two seasons with West Brom, then moved to Portsmouth, where he again raised the FA Cup in 2008.

27 July 2009 - The Great Striker Swap Of 2009

On 27 July 2009, Inter and Barcelona confirmed a transfer in which striker Zlatan Ibrahimović moved to Camp Nou in exchange for Barcelona striker Samuel Eto'o, a season-long loan of midfielder Alexander Hleb, and €46 million.

With Eto'o valued at €20 million, the total value given for the Swedish striker was reported as €66 million, making him the third most expensive footballer in history, behind Zindine Zidane (€76 million in 2001) and Cristiano Ronaldo (€94 million in 2009), both of whom went to Real Madrid. After the deal was announced, Hleb refused to move to Inter, so Barcelona sent him on loan to Stuttgart and paid Inter an additional €3 million, raising the total value to €69 million.

The deal had been rumored for weeks, fueled primarily by Eto'o's reported dissatisfaction at Barça. With Eto'o unsettled, the Catalan side turned their eyes to Ibrahimović, who was coming off his best season ever. He had scored 25 goals in 35 league appearances for Inter, winning his third consecutive Scudetto. Eto'o had performed even better, however, scoring 36 goals in all competitions as Barça won a Spanish-record six trophies, including La Liga and the Champions League.

After the transfer, Eto'o again got the better of Ibrahimović, as Inter went on to win Serie A, the Coppa Italia, and the Champions League with a total of 16 goals from the Cameroon international, while Barcelona had to content themselves by winning La Liga and 10 goals from Ibrahimović in all competitions. Fatefully, the teams met three times in the Champions League, with Barça earning a win and a draw in the group stage, but getting eliminated by a 3-2 aggregate loss to Inter in the semi-finals.

27 May 1965 - Inter Bars The Door

On 27 May 1965, Inter defeated Benfica 1-0 in the European Cup Final before a crowd of 85,000 at the San Siro. It was the second consecutive European Cup for the Italian side, who would not win it again until 2010.

At the time, Benfica had themselves recently won two straight European Cups (in 1961 and 1962) and boasted the tournament's joint top scorers in Eusébio and José Augusto Torres (pictured at far right), both with nine goals. But Inter were playing at their home stadium, where, playing the catenaccio system masterminded by their manager Helenio Herrera, they had conceded only one goal throughout that season's competition. The Final thus shaped up as a classic battle of offense against defense.

On the day, Inter were helped by the poor weather, with rain slowing both the pitch and the speed of the Portuguese attack. Inter received another lucky break when their Brazilian midfielder Jair de Costa took what appeared to be an easily-handled shot on goal in the 42nd minute. The wet ball slipped through the hands of Benfica keeper Costa Pereira to give Inter a 1-0 lead. Which, as it turned out, was all they needed as Benfica proved unable to crack the Italians' defense.

Inter returned to the Final twice more, losing to Celtic in 1967 and Ajax in 1972 before winning their third European Cup/Champions League trophy in 2010 over Bayern Munich.

12 April 1948 - The Italians Get Lippi

On 12 April 1948, future World Cup-winning manager Marcello Lippi was born in Viareggio, Italy. After a lengthy and distinguished career as a player in Serie A, he made his real mark as a manager, winning five Scudettos and one Champions League title with Juventus before taking the Italian national team to World Cup victory in 2006.

A midfielder, Lippi spent most of his playing years with Sampdoria, for whom he played from 1969 to 1980 (with a brief loan to Serie C side Savona in his first season). In that time, he made 274 league appearances for the Blucherchiati. In 1980, he transferred to Pistoiese, who were in Serie A the time, but were relegated at the end of the 1980-81 season. He spent one year with them in Serie B before retiring in 1982.

He returned to Sampdoria later that year to coach the youth team, then spent the next decade managing eight different clubs before landing in Turin in 1994 for the first of his two spells in charge of Juventus. In his first season there, the Bianconeri won both the league and the Coppa d'Italia, while finishing as runners-up to Parma in that season's UEFA Cup Final. Lippi then put together a string of additional trophies, including the 1996 Champions League Title and back-to-back Scudettos in 1997 and 1998.

In 1999, he moved to Inter, but had an unsuccessful 1999-2000 season and was sacked after one match into the 2000-01 season. He returned to Juventus in 2001 and won two more league titles in his first two seasons back in Turin.

In 2004, the Italian Football Federation appointed Lippi as manager of the national team, replacing Giovanni Trappatoni. He helmed the Azzurri to the 2006 World Cup title in Germany and retired three days later, handing the reins over to Livorno manager Roberto Donadoni. But after a disappointing Euro 2008 performance, the Azzurri sacked Donadoni and re-appointed Lippi, who is prearing to take the team to South Africa this summer.

24 March 1965 - The Curse Of The Coin Toss

On 24 March 1965, Liverpool and Köln, having already drawn 0-0 over two legs in the European Cup quarterfinals, played a rematch in Rotterdam. As with the 1957 World Cup qualifying rematch between Spain and Turkey, the European Cup tie came down to a coin toss.

In fact, the 1964-65 European Cup competition was rife with outcomes decided by the flip of a coin. Both Anderlecht and Dukla Prague needed one to advance out of the preliminary round after scoreless playoff matches against Bologna and Górnik Zabrze, respectively. In a bit of foreshadowing for Liverpool, both teams were eliminated in the next round - Dukla Prague by Real Madrid and Anderlecht by Liverpool themselves to set up the quarterfinal matchup against Köln.

The first two matches, played in Cologne on 10 February and in Liverpool on 17 March, ended as scoreless draws, requiring a replay at a neutral ground. The teams met in Rotterdam on 24 March and Liverpool jumped out to a 2-0 lead with goals from forwards Ian St. John (20) and Roger Hunt (37). Given the teams' inability to score in the first two legs, the lead was as improbable as it was seemingly insurmountable.

But the Germans were undaunted and wasted little time in pulling themselves level. One minute after Hunt's goal, striker Karl-Heinz Thielen cut Liverpool's lead in half, then, three minutes into the second half, his fellow striker Hannes Löhr netted the equalizer. That would be the last goal of the match, as the teams finished 2-2. To break the deadlock, the rules at the time called for a coin toss, which Liverpool won. Their reward was a semifinal meeting with Cup holders Inter, who eliminated the English side by an aggregate score of 3-4 on their way to their second consecutive European Cup trophy.

10 March 1981 - The Pride Of The Indomitable Lions

On 10 March 1981, Barcelona star and Cameroon international Samuel Eto'o was born in Nkon, Cameroon. He currently holds the record for most appearances in La Liga by an African player.

Although most closely associated with Barcelona, Eto'o got his professional start for Barça's fierce rivals Real Madrid, signing for them in 1997. But he failed to make an impact in the Spanish capital and spent most of his time on loan with Leganés, Espanyol, and Mallorca between 1997 and 2000. In 2000, he signed a permanent deal with Mallorca and spent an additional four successful seasons there, along the way winning the 2003 Copa del Rey. He did so well at Mallorca that Real wanted to re-sign him in 2004, but he left instead for Barcelona.

His time at Barcelona was very successful, with three league titles (2005, 2006, 2009) and two Champions League trophies (2006, 2009). On 4 May 2008, he made his 242nd La Liga appearance, breaking the record for most league appearances by an African player. By the time he left Barcelona in the summer of 2009, he had raised that number to 3o9.

Eto'o has also been successful for Cameroon, helping them win the 2000 and 2002 African Cup of Nations, as well as the 2008 Olympic gold medal. He is the all-time top scorer for the Indomitable Lions, notching 44 goals in 94 appearances.

He currently plays for Inter, having moved to the Milanese club in 2009 as part of a deal that sent Inter's Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovich to Barcelona.

[2012 Update: Eto'o left Inter in 2011 for Russian club Anzhi Makhachkala, who gave him a salary of approximately €20M per season, making him the world's highest-paid footballer.]

9 March 1908 - Enter Inter

On 9 March 1908, a group of players from the Milan Cricket and Football Club (now known as AC Milan), unhappy with the club's restrictions on foreign players, formed their own club which they named Football Club Internazionale Milano. Inter has since become one of Italy's most decorated clubs, with 26 national trophies, including 18 Serie A titles.

Known as the Nerazzurri for their black and blue striped home shirts, Inter won their first Scudetto in 1910, followed by a second in 1920. By 1922, Inter's fortunes had turned and they finished last in Serie A with a meager 11 points on the season. They avoided relegation, however, by winning a playoff against the next-to-last team, thus preserving their current status as the only team in Italy to remain in Serie A for their entire existence.

Mussolini's Fascist government disapproved of Inter's policy of recruiting foreign players and, in 1928, forced the club to play under the name "Ambrosiana." Nevertheless, Inter did well during the Fascist years, winning their first Coppa Italia (1939) and a fifth league title (1940).

Inter's greatest period came in the 1960s under manager Helenio Herrera. Nicknamed "La Grande Inter" for their successes, the club won three league titles (1963, 1965, 1966) and two European Cups (1964, 1965). They made it back to the European Cup Final in 1967, where they famously lost to Celtic's "Lisbon Lions."

After going through the entire 1990s without winning the league, Inter has since recovered their domestic form, winning five consecutive Scudettos from 2006 to 2010 (though the first, in 2005-06, was awarded to Inter after initial title-winner Juventus was found guilty of match-fixing). They also won the 2010 Champions League.

[Updated on 9 March 2012]