In Roman times, while there was a much greater body of written work, oration was still the medium for critical debate.
Unlike public speakers of today, who use notes or who read their speeches, good orators were expected to deliver their speeches without such aids.
Memoria was the discipline of recalling the arguments of a discourse. It generally received less attention from writers than other parts of rhetoric, as there is less to be said about the subject.
In football, the greatest oratory arguments sustain when married to honours.
And whilst Inter are objectively the most successful Italian football of the 2020s, will they be recalled as a ‘great’ side in the history books without winning the Champions League?
Do we look at Inter’s last five seasons as memorable?
Inter won their first Scudetto since the historic 2009/10 treble season in 2020/21, capping off the first chapter in the Antonio Conte and Romelu Lukaku love affair.
Both were to depart Inter in the summer of 2021, but unlike so many other clubs who have seen their star striker and manager leave at the end of a successful season, Inter would bring in Simone Inzaghi as head coach.
He remains four years on, breaking the cycle of transactional manager appointments and short spells in charge that often define head coach’s role in Serie A.
Although it would take Inzaghi three seasons to win Serie A, two Coppa Italia titles and back-to-back Suppercoppa’s were plenty enough to show that Inter had by no means regressed in those first two years.
They reached the Champions League final in 2022/23, only to lose valiantly to a Manchester City side who, at the peak of their powers under Pep Guardiola, went on to win their own historic treble.
Last season saw the addition of Marcus Thuram, who has added an extra dimension of power to the Inter’s forward line, complementing the star power of Lautaro Martinez, who has proven to be one of the most consistent strikers in the world and Inter’s golden boot winner in the last four seasons under Inzaghi.
No team from Italy has won the Champions League since Inter’s triumph in 2010.
Although Juventus, the outstanding team of the 2010s in Italy, reached the Champions League final on two occasions between 2015 & 2017, they too found it a step too far to bridge the gap of domestic dominance and European conquerors, despite their 12 domestic titles during the period between 2014 & 2019.
Brought in with a remit to embody the missing piece of the puzzle for Juventus in 2018, Cristiano Ronaldo could only support his side to the quarter-finals of the Champions League.
And since his departure in 2021, Juve have had to watch on as Inter have taken up the mantle of Italy’s best hope in Europe.
Who do we remember when we think of the great Italian sides in Europe?
Other than Inter, who’s 2010 treble triumph under the guidance of Jose Mourinho has shaped football folklore, one team has managed to conquer with memoria this side of the millennium.
The great AC Milan team of the 2000s, twice winners of the Champions League during the period of 2002 to 2007, remain one of the most famed.
Alessandro Nesta, Paolo Maldini, Andriy Shevchenko, Gennaro Gattuso, Clarence Seedorf, Andrea Pirlo, Kaka, Hernan Crespo, Filippo Inzaghi, Dida… The list of stars to grace the red and black stripes of Milan underneath Carlo Ancelotti are endless.
And yet, most will first be reminded of the runner-up medal in 2004/05, the greatest final in European history.
Domestically, just one league title and one Coppa Italia is a criminal return for such a great side, and half the return on Inter’s last five year period.
But Inter need their European glory to complete their legacy. On Saturday, memoria can be made for generations to come.