Jose Mourinho achieved his latest European masterpiece as his Inter Milan reached their first UEFA Champions League final despite a 1-0 semi-final second-leg defeat at Barcelona.
Inter defended to the death, and were really put to the ultimate test of battling Barcelona's precision and ball-movement with only 10 men for over an hour.
However, a numerical disadvantage in manpower did little to damage Inter, who maintained a tight defensive formation that stifled the guile of Lionel Messi and Xavi with relative ease.
The Serie A leaders continued to frustrate their hosts in the second half as Pep Guardiola failed to conjure a Plan B, before Pique created a nail-biting conclusion with a cool finish in the 84th minute.
Barcelona, though, could not find the necessary second on the night as a Bojan strike was debatably ruled out to mean that their 'obsession', in the words of Mourinho, of retaining their title in the Bernabeu came to an end.
Mourinho's reaction at the final whistle said it all as he sprinted around the Nou Camp pitch with his hands aloft, a pointed salute to the Barca supporters and media critics who had labelled him "The Translator" in mocking tribute to his time at the club in the 1990s.
This was further testimony to the Portuguese manager's claims to be "The Special One" as his side's tactics, belief and resolve withstood a home onslaught that saw Barca run out of ideas.
Mourinho hailed his side's Champions League semi-final victory over holders Barcelona as "the greatest moment of my career".
Inter defended to the death, and were really put to the ultimate test of battling Barcelona's precision and ball-movement with only 10 men for over an hour.
However, a numerical disadvantage in manpower did little to damage Inter, who maintained a tight defensive formation that stifled the guile of Lionel Messi and Xavi with relative ease.
The Serie A leaders continued to frustrate their hosts in the second half as Pep Guardiola failed to conjure a Plan B, before Pique created a nail-biting conclusion with a cool finish in the 84th minute.
Barcelona, though, could not find the necessary second on the night as a Bojan strike was debatably ruled out to mean that their 'obsession', in the words of Mourinho, of retaining their title in the Bernabeu came to an end.
Mourinho's reaction at the final whistle said it all as he sprinted around the Nou Camp pitch with his hands aloft, a pointed salute to the Barca supporters and media critics who had labelled him "The Translator" in mocking tribute to his time at the club in the 1990s.
This was further testimony to the Portuguese manager's claims to be "The Special One" as his side's tactics, belief and resolve withstood a home onslaught that saw Barca run out of ideas.
Mourinho hailed his side's Champions League semi-final victory over holders Barcelona as "the greatest moment of my career".
"For the players, me, the fans, it's the greatest," said the Portuguese, whose team will face Bayern Munich in the 22 May final in Madrid.
"I've won the Champions League (with Porto in 2004) but today was better."
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