Before Palace’s heritage dating back to 1861 had come to light, 2005 was seen as the club’s centenary year. A celebratory fixture against Inter Milan was a fitting way to mark the occasion.
Palace’s record against the Italian giants was a good one – in fact, they were unbeaten. The sides had only met on two occasions, back in 1971 as the Eagles emerged victorious at the San Siro before sharing the spoils in SE25.
This Inter side was a different beast, however. Their summer business included the signing of Luis Figo from Real Madrid among other household names, and they were en route to reclaiming the title from Juventus.
As the teams emerged at Selhurst, Roberto Mancini’s XI was an intimidating sight. Julio Cesar in goal, Javier Zanetti and Marco Materazzi in defence, Dejan Stankovic and Esteban Cambiasso in midfield and Adriano in attack.
Palace fought hard, but Inter scored early on through Obafemi Martins before adding a second after the break without response.
Despite defeat, it was some occasion for a Palace side about to embark on another push for promotion.
Palace: Kiraly (Speroni, 67), Boyce (Riihilahti, 46), Ward, (Hudson, 46), Hall (Butterfield, 46), Fray (Borrowdale, 56), McAnuff (Andrews, 64), Watson, Leigertwood, Soares (Kolkka, 46), Macken (Freedman, 46), Johnson (Togwell, 46).
Inter Milan: Julio Cesar, Zanetti (Zé Maria, 56), Favalli (Belaid, 83), Materazzi (Bonucci, 82), Womé (Fautario, 83), Stankovic (Giani, 73), Pizarro (Maa Boumsong, 73), Cambiasso (Karagounis, 56), Solari (Arrieta, 78), Adriano (Choutos, 56), Martins (Momenté, 78).