Nearly 15 years on from locking horns in the 2009-10 Champions League final, Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich and Serie A champions Inter Milan square off for a place in this year’s semi-finals, starting with Tuesday’s quarter-final first leg at the Allianz Arena.
Vincent Kompany‘s men triumphed in an all-German battle with Bayer Leverkusen to advance to the final eight, while the Nerazzurri ended Feyenoord’s European journey in the last 16.
Match preview
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Fifty percent of Bayern’s revenge mission over Leverkusen is now complete; as well as holding an unassailable lead over Xabi Alonso‘s 2023-24 Invincibles at the top of the Bundesliga table, the Munich mammoths ended Die Werkself’s hopes of Champions League supremacy a few weeks ago.
By easing to a 5-0 aggregate victory over the German champions in the last 16 – following up a 3-0 home triumph with a 2-0 away victory – Bayern Munich advanced to the quarter-finals of the Champions League for a record 23rd time in their history, and for the sixth season running.
In fact, the Bavarians are the only team to have progressed to the last eight in every tournament since 2019-20 – coincidentally the year of their last European success – thanks in no small part to an astounding home record, going unbeaten in their last 22 UCL games at the Allianz Arena.
Still on course for a domestic and European double, Bayern emerged 3-1 winners from their trip to Augsburg on Friday night, meaning that they remain six points clear of Leverkusen could reclaim their rightful Bundesliga title in just three games’ time.
However, the hosts’ latest Bundesliga triumph came at a serious cost, as prolific playmaker Jamal Musiala suffered a torn muscle that will likely sideline him for the remainder of the season, a devastating blow to Bayern’s chances of breaking down a dogged Inter defence.
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While Bayern’s tally of 28 goals in the 2024-25 Champions League is second only to Barcelona’s 32, Simone Inzaghi‘s Inter have produced many a rearguard masterclass, conceding a mere two goals in their 10 tournament games so far this term.
One of those efforts shipped did come in the second leg of their last-16 contest with Feyenoord, but Jakub Moder‘s penalty proved inconsequential, as Marcus Thuram and Hakan Calhanoglu‘s strikes propelled the Italian champions to a resounding 4-1 aggregate victory.
Inter are long overdue another slice of success on the continental stage, having won their third and most recent Champions League title against none other than Bayern in 2010, but their aforementioned defensive prowess failed them in Saturday’s league meeting with Parma.
Indeed, Inzaghi’s side let a 2-0 lead slip in a 2-2 stalemate with the bottom-half battlers, meaning that their lead at the top of the Serie A table could be cut down to just one point if closest challengers Napoli get the better of Bologna on Monday evening.
Throwing away a healthy advantage at Parma continued a trend for Inter on their travels, as the Serie A champions have now only won two of their last eight away matches across all competitions, and recent memories of facing Bayern are not fond either.
The 2009-10 finalists last locked horns in the 2022-23 group stage, where Bayern prevailed 2-0 home and away, and the Germans can look forward to a semi-final bout with Barcelona or Borussia Dortmund if they can repeat the trick over the next fortnight.
Team News
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With Musiala watching on helplessly for several weeks, Kompany will likely have no choice but to turn to 35-year-old Thomas Muller, who is confirmed to be ending his glittering spell at Bayern this summer but not without a potential run back in the starting XI.
As well as the stricken Musiala, the hosts have lost defensive duo Alphonso Davies and Dayot Upamecano to serious knee problems, and it remains to be seen if Kingsley Coman (unspecified) and Manuel Neuer (calf) will be available for the first leg; the latter’s chances are considered incredibly slim.
However, hotshot Harry Kane played down fears of an injury on Friday after he was seen with an ice pack on his ankle, and the Tottenham Hotspur legend should be given the thumbs-up to lead the line after becoming the first English player to score 10 goals in a single Champions League season.
Meanwhile, Inter’s defensive collapse against Parma can be partially attributed to Alessandro Bastoni being withdrawn at half time with a knee problem, but the Italy international is believed to be winning his battle to be fit for the first leg.
The same cannot be said for Mehdi Taremi (muscle), Piotr Zielinski (calf) or Denzel Dumfries (thigh), though, while midfield fulcrum Kristjan Asllani must serve a one-game ban for an accumulation of yellow cards.
With Zielinski and Asllani both unavailable, the door will open for Davide Frattesi to join Calhanoglu and Henrikh Mkhitaryan in the centre of the park, behind the lethal strikeforce of Thuram and skipper Lautaro Martinez.
Bayern Munich possible starting lineup:
Urbig; Laimer, Kim, Dier, Guerreiro; Palhinha, Kimmich; Olise, Muller, Sane; Kane
Inter Milan possible starting lineup:
Sommer; Acerbi, Bisseck, Bastoni; Darmian, Calhanoglu, Frattesi, Mkhitaryan, Dimarco; Thuram, Martinez
We say: Bayern Munich 2-1 Inter Milan
The very definition of an unstoppable force meeting an immovable object, Tuesday’s battle will be nothing short of a fascinating fight between an attack-minded Bayern and a defensively-sound Inter.
Absentees and knocks on both sides could impact both managers’ game plans, though, and even with Musiala not strutting his stuff in the final third, we can still picture a Kane and Michael Olise-inspired Bayern taking a slender lead to San Siro.
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