José Mourinho triumphed with act of defiance and force of personality

José Mourinho's notorious sprint down the Old Trafford touchline all those years ago when he was making his name with Porto was, evidently, just a warm-up. Come the final whistle of this intense yet engrossing last hurdle en route to the final in Madrid, Mourinho scampered across the sacred turf of Camp Nou, then struck a pose, a gesture of rampant defiance, aimed at the pocket of Inter fans up in the gods. Barcelona's irritated goalkeeper Victor Valdés tried to interrupt Mourinho's salute. Not a chance. This was yet another milestone moment that this singular coach intended to milk to the full.

Another Champions League final. Another one in the eye for European favourites. Another tactical masterpiece. Bayern Munich had reason to be afraid of the prospect of Barcelona in the final. But who is to now say that this Internazionale team – albeit in a different way – is not just as intimidating?

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It had seemed trite before this epic got under way to bill it as the Special One against the Exceptional XI. Apart from anything else that did a disservice to an Inter side that has evolved over this European adventure in a way few at San Siro could imagine at the beginning of the campaign. They hardly looked the part as they opened up the group stage with three draws. It appeared to be a case of same old Inter, the Italian big hitters who turn into wallflowers on the continental stage.

What Mourinho has helped this team to discover is personality. The combination of his particular brand of leadership, with the inspired transfers from last summer which emboldened their ranks to the tune of Lúcio, Wesley Sneijder, Diego Milito and Samuel Eto'o, has allowed Inter to express themselves on the grandest arena in a way that has eluded them for years.

The game's turning point – the dismissal of Thiago Motta just before the half hour mark, which was induced by the dramatics of Sergio Busquets – was telling. Mourinho's mock applause for the benefit of 93,000 Barça socios, as well as the referee, Frank De Bleeckere (and you could throw in the rest of the world for good measure), defined the x-factor that has taken this Inter team to the brink of the European summit.

Motta was distraught and Inter reduced. Barça expected to press the advantage home. But there is nothing like a sprinkling of injustice to fire the flames of a Mourinho team. Inter's body language was revealing. This was a group of hardened professionals who talked to each other, cajoled each other, instructed, ensured the fine tuning and focus necessary to keep a famously attacking team at arm's length despite depleted numbers.

Just look at the men he could field to do the job: Júlio César (aged 30) has established himself as one of the most robust goalkeepers around. Maicon (28) is Brazil's right-back of choice over Dani Alves with good reason given the way he commands both ends of his flank. Lúcio (31) with all his experience was a steal for Inter from Bayern in the summer. Walter Samuel (32) is a fearsome competitor. Javier Zanetti (36) is extraordinarily reliable. That is a backline with a vast amount of experience, an all-Latin international collective with an awesome blend of defensive will and wiles, to make sure Inter could hold what they had.

Special note must also be made of the contribution of Esteban Cambiasso, another seasoned South American, who anchored midfield superbly, handling the jobs of two water carriers once Motta had departed. This was classic catenaccio, played out by an entirely non-Italian selection drilled by a Portuguese coach. Perfetto.

For all but the last 10 minutes Barcelona were comfortably neutralised. They were simply unable to weave the spells that bewildered Arsenal in the last round. The best player around, Lionel Messi, was smothered until the late push. The famed conductor, Xavi, found his soloists were largely off key. It took desperate measures, with Gerard Piqué shoved up front to supplement the array of nimble little ball players, to make for a close finale.

And how close it could have been, when Bojan Krkic lashed in, only for the referee to blow for a Yaya Touré handball that the Ivorian could barely avoid with the ball belted at him at close range. Pep Guardiola shouted to the heavens.

This was not to be his night. It belonged to Barça's old translator. The man who has delivered Inter's first final for nearly 40 years. And didn't he make sure they all knew it. Mourinho was still in the zone when he got back into the dressing room to share this success with his charges. "It's an incredible joy," he said. "The players left blood out there and the fans were marvellous. It's the greatest loss of my life. This team deserved to draw 0-0. It was an extraordinary game. It's tough with 11 players against Barcelona – with 10 it's a historic feat."