The most iconic image from the Milan derby came not from a goal, but from a moment of tension at the centre of the pitch. Stefano Rellandini, the photographer behind the shot, captured Marco Materazzi leaning on Rui Costa during AC Milan and Inter Milan's 2005 Champions League quarter-final second leg at San Siro.
That match was later abandoned after 73 minutes amid flares, smoke and thrown objects, before the tie was awarded to Milan, who were already leading 3-0 on aggregate. The photograph has since come to symbolise the rivalry between Inter and Milan because it caught a brief, human moment inside a chaotic night.
How the image was taken
Rellandini said attention around the stadium was fixed on the disorder in the stands. “Everyone was focused on the flares, on the smoke,” he said. “But near the centre of the pitch I saw a certain moment.”
He explained why the two players stood out to him. “Materazzi was nicknamed something like a butcher; he is not really a gentle player,” he said. “Rui Costa was the opposite - more gentle, more artistic in his football.”
That contrast is part of what gives the picture its power. For several seconds Materazzi put his elbow on the shoulder of Rui Costa, and Rellandini recognised that the instant told the story better than any wider view of the chaos. “So when I saw that, I shot it,” he said. “I have just one frame in that sequence. That was the moment.”
Why the picture endured
The photo has lasted because it captures more than one incident. It reflects the pressure, the hostility and the emotion that sit inside a Milan derby, while also freezing a relationship between two players who represented opposite styles.
It also belongs to a match that ended in controversy. A Champions League quarter-final should have been decided by football, but the second leg at San Siro was stopped after 73 minutes and the result was settled away from the pitch. That is why the image remains tied to the story of the fixture itself, not just to a single game.
Sport has described it as the fixture's most iconic image, and even as attention turns to the latest Milan derby, the photograph remains one of the clearest reminders of how fierce this rivalry can become.
