Inter Milan fans will never know how good Ronaldo could have been for the Nerazzurri.
A series of career-threatening knee injuries not only curtailed his impact at the San Siro but forced the Brazilian to adapt his game.
Yet for one brilliant debut season, ‘Il Fenomeno’ dazzled Serie A with his searing mix of speed, strength and once-in-a-generation skill.
That campaign culminated in what was undoubtedly Ronaldo’s finest 90 minutes in the black and blue of Inter – the 1998 UEFA Cup final against Lazio.
Great expectations
Inter travelled to the Parc de Princes in Paris in early May contemplating the unthinkable.
A year earlier the world record £19.5million signing of Ronaldo from Barcelona had heralded the dawn of an exciting new era at the club.
But it hadn’t quite gone to plan.
Dumped out of the Coppa Italia following a 5-0 humiliation at the hands of bitter rivals AC Milan, Inter’s title challenge had also faltered in the final stretch after a narrow 1-0 defeat to Juventus and a home draw with lowly Piacenza.
Lose the UEFA Cup final and manager Luigi Simoni would be facing the reality of a season without a trophy to show for his team’s efforts.
The Nerazzurri’s prospects going into the final weren’t good either.
Out of form domestically, Inter had lost the previous year’s UEFA Cup final on penalties to Schalke with Aron Winter and Ivan Zamorano missing from the spot.
🔵⚪️ Schalke won the UEFA Cup #OTD in 1997, beating Inter 4-1 on penalties 🏆#UEL | @s04 pic.twitter.com/lJiaE5obDc
— UEFA Europa League (@EuropaLeague) May 21, 2020
In Sven Goran Eriksson’s Lazio they faced the newly-crowned Coppa Italia winners and a team boasting the likes of Alessandro Nesta, Pavel Nedved and Roberto Mancini.
The Rome club had also romped to victory when the two teams last met in Serie A with a comfortable 3-0 win at the Olimpico.
Inter needed someone to step up, take the game by the scruff of the neck and calm a few nerves. Fortunately, they had just the man for such an occasion.
A score to settle
While Inter’s fortunes hung in the balance, Ronaldo came into the game off the back of a brilliant debut campaign in what was then considered the best league in the world.
The Brazil international had scored 25 goals in Serie A and 34 in all competitions. That tally included a crucial match-winning brace in Inter’s semi-final second leg clash against Spartak Moscow, who were heading through on away goals until his…
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