It's been a while but on Wednesday night Milan will be the epicentre of European football once again.
The mouth-watering Champions League semi-final between AC Milan and Inter Milan will evoke memories of the two previous occasions these fierce rivals have met in knockout competition.
Exactly two decades ago, Andriy Shevchenko was Milan's hero with the decisive 'away' goal inside the San Siro to settle a tense and fraught semi-final.
That set up another all-Italian affair with Juventus in the Old Trafford final which Milan won on penalties.
Then there was the controversial and downright shameful events of the 2005 Derby della Madonnina quarter-final when Milan goalkeeper Dida was struck by a flare hurled onto the pitch by the Inter fans.
As smoke and fire rained down from the stands, the decision was taken to abandon the match with 18 minutes left to play. With Milan leading 3-0 on aggregate at the time, they were heading through but the Inter fans' actions brought widespread condemnation.
Hopefully this latest encounter, with either Real Madrid or Manchester City awaiting the victors in the Istanbul final, will pass peacefully.
But with fans of both clubs having to co-exist in their day-to-day lives within their sports-mad city, there is sure to be plenty of tension ahead of the most significant derby in many years.
Just to glance at the teamsheets from those 2003 games is to understand the strength of the two Milan clubs - and in turn Italian football - in that era.
AC Milan had Paolo Maldini, Gennaro Gattuso, Andrea Pirlo, Shevchenko, Clarence Seedorf, Filippo Inzaghi, Alessandro Nesta, Alessandro Costacurta and Rivaldo.
Inter Milan lined up with Javier Zanetti, Hernan Crespo, Ivan Cordoba, Marco Materazzi, Fabio Cannavaro and Sergio Conceicao.
Throwing these two together at such a crucial point in the competition set nerves jangling.
'We had six days of total tension,' Maldini recalled to UEFA.com.
His team-mate Costacurta remembered: 'Those were the worst days of my long football life. Those derbies dominated the previous month.'
The first leg was a cagey goalless draw of few clear-cut chances - Shevchenko saw a curling shot batted away by the outstretched arm of Francesco Toldo and Gattuso was left thumping the ground in anger as his effort flashed wide.
The second leg the following week saw the red, white and black banners of Milan replaced by the blue and back of Inter in the majority of the stadium.
After 135 minutes of trying, the deadlock in the tie was finally broken by Shevchenko in first-half stoppage time.
Latching onto Seedorf's through pass, the Ukrainian rounded Cordoba and then scooped the ball over the advancing Toldo to find the net. The away goal and its timing would prove crucial.
Inter had little choice but to attack in pursuit of two goals but were met by the stiff resistance of that legendary Milan rearguard.
With eight minutes left, they did score through Nigerian youngster Obafemi Martins, who turned Maldini and slotted home at the near post beyond Dida.
Despite some late moments of desperation, Milan held on to make the final and would win the European Cup for the sixth time.
A couple of years later and they did it all over again, this time a round earlier.
Inter were naturally motivated by revenge for two years earlier and the fact they'd been forced to live in the shadow of their neighbours for some time.
While the Nerazzurri's last title success had come way back in 1989 and they hadn't lifted the European Cup since 1965, Milan had won multiple trophies at home and abroad in the interim.
Roberto Mancini's Inter, the 'away' side in the first leg, went on the offensive despite being without their first-choice forward pair Adriano and Christian Vieri.
Milan keeper Dida had to make a string of important saves with Martins and Julio Cruz causing problems for Maldini, Nesta and Jaap Stam in the Rossoneri back line.
So it was against the flow of play and from a most unlikely source when Stam rose highest to head Pirlo's free-kick home on the stroke of half-time. It was one of only two goals the Dutch defender would score for the club.
Milan were more assured after the interval and Shevchenko's second on 74 minutes, a header from another inviting Pirlo free-kick from the right wing, put them in firm control of the tie.
The San Siro was a powderkeg ahead of Inter's 'home' leg the following week and even more so when Shevchenko appeared to headbutt Materazzi in just the second minute.
The referee Markus Merk didn't see the incident and Shevchenko wasn't punished at the time or retrospectively.
It proved significant because Sheva extended Milan's aggregate lead to 3-0 on the half-hour, striking left-footed from outside the box and across Toldo into the net.
Inter hadn't beaten Milan in three years, so a comeback was always unlikely and frustrations among their fans well and truly boiled over in the final 20 minutes.
A hail of projectiles came down from the Ultras including several flares and fireworks, one of which hit Dida on the shoulder.
The barrage continued while the Brazilian was led away to safety to receive treatment and after much uncertainty, Merk abandoned the game and led the players off.
Amid the chaos, Materazzi walked over to Rui Costa and rested his arm on his shoulder, leading to an iconic photo.
Milan boss Carlo Ancelotti said: 'What happened will not just discredit Inter but all of the city. The reaction of the Inter fans was completely unexpected.
'I was really surprised because I have never seen something like this in all of the Milan derbies I have taken part in.'
After UEFA deliberations, they awarded the second leg 3-0 in Milan's favour, making it 5-0 on aggregate, and ordered Inter to play four matches behind closed doors.
Milan went on to reach the final, where they famously surrendered a three-goal lead before losing on penalties to Liverpool in Istanbul.
Now a final in the very same stadium is within sight once again. Familiar foes are blocking their path.