Diego Alberto Milito

First name :Diego Alberto
Last name :Milito
Nationality :Argentina
Date of birth :12 June 1979
Age :31
Country :ArgentinaPlace of birth
Height :180 cm
Weigh :78 kg
Foot :Right

The striker adapted to his new surroundings quickly and had an excellent start to his Internazionale career scoring two goals in a 2–0 World Football Challenge win over Milan.[14] Subsequently on 29 August, in his first ever Milan Derby in Serie A, Milito assisted two goals and scored a penalty, his first league goal of the season, to cap off a 4–0 victory.[15] Later, on 13 September, he scored his second league goal in a 2–0 home win against Parma.[16] In the next league match against Cagliari he scored both goals for Inter in a 1–2 away win.[17] These two goals placed him at the top of the all-time Serie A scoring charts for best strike rate, with 28 goals in 35 games, giving him an average of 0.8 goals per game.[18] Milito continued his fine run of form with another goal in the next league match against Napoli, scoring the second goal after Samuel Eto'o scored in the first minute, a game that they won 3–1.[19]

The consistency which Milito had shown at his previous clubs was sustained throughout his debut season at Inter, and after the first few matches he had established himself as a key contributor to the squad. On 30 October, in a 5–3 home victory against Palermo, Milito, who had returned from an injury, came off the bench to make the result safe scoring Internazionale's fifth goal.[20] In the next game, against Livorno he scored another goal,[21] taking his strike rate up to seven goals in nine league matches. Three days later, on 4 November, he scored his first goal in the UEFA Champions League in a 1–2 group stage win over Dynamo Kyiv, it was the equaliser which led to Wesley Sneijder's game-winner in the 89th.[22] On 24 February, in another Champions League match, this time in a 2–1 round of 16 win against Chelsea, he scored another important goal, his second in the competition.[23] Four days later, Milito netted the matchwinner which gave Internazionale a 3–2 victory at Udinese, in a thrilling win for the "Nerazzurri".[24] On 27 March, after missing a 3–0 win over Livorno[25] with a hamstring problem, Milito returned for a crucial battle at title contenders Roma, where he scored one goal in a 2–1 loss.[26][27] On 31 March, in a 1–0 Champions League quarter-finals win against CSKA Moscow, he scored the winning goal which enhanced Internazionale's chances of reaching the semi-finals.[28] Diego scored a vital goal in a 3–1 home win against Barcelona in a first leg Champions League semi-final win.

During the very last matches of the 2009–2010 season, Milito proved instrumental in Inter's winning of the first treble in the history of Italian football. The Argentine first scored the only goal in Inter's victory over Roma in the final of the Coppa Italia on 5 May 2010, enabling the nerazzurri to take home their first trophy of the season.[29] Eleven days later, it was also Milito's goal which secured Internazionale's 18th scudetto when they beat Siena 1–0 on the final matchday of Serie A. With only two points separating the top two teams in Serie A, the goal lifted Inter to the summit of the table after being in a position to lose the league title to Roma at the half-time break as Roma, playing simultaneously, were winning their own match against Chievo at that point. Milito himself declared this goal to be the "best of his career",[30] having been decisive in delivering a league title to his team. However, there was more to come from the forward and on 22 May 2010 Milito yet again proved vital as he scored twice to seal a victory in the Champions League Final over Bayern Munich. As a result Internazionale became European club champions for the first time in 45 years with a 2–0 victory and completed their historic treble championship season. [31]

After the treble success many pundits took note of the fact that Milito had always been an effective and efficient striker, yet remained one of the most underrated players in world football because of his low-key manner and the fact that he had plied his trade for smaller, less competitive teams prior to joining Inter.[32] Scoring goals on the biggest stages for a marquee team finally earned the striker the recognition merited by his skill and goalscoring record. Of the player and his two Champions League winning goals, The Guardian wrote:
“ Vision, timing, flawless technique and sangfroid – these two goals had everything a great striker needs, plus a sense of lyricism in the fluency of his movement. The 30-year-old Milito is hardly a fancy striker, not a Messi taking your breath away with a trick or a Tevez galvanising the stadium with elemental force, but his economy has been just as devastating.