By Graham Ruthven
Champions League heritage
In the pantheon of great Champions League moments, Barcelona and Inter Milan produced one that lives long in the memory. Certainly in the memory of José Mourinho whose greatest night arguably came when the two sides met in the competition’s semi-finals.
Mourinho conquered Pep Guardiola that night, and celebrated by sprinting across the Camp Nou turf. Simone Inzaghi might be tempted to celebrate in a similar way should Inter achieve a similar result against Barca such is the Italians’ poor form right now.
Inter are winless in their last three games. They have fallen off the pace at the top of Serie A and are out of the Coppa Italia. Their season will be defined by what happens in the Champions League.
Barcelona’s Treble challenge is in better shape. Hansi Flick’s team won the Copa del Rey by beating Real Madrid in a manic final on Saturday and are leading the way at the top of LaLiga. Champions League glory is also within reach.
Key players
Lamine Yamal shone brightly as Spain won Euro 2024 last summer and the prodigious teenager is also driving Barcelona to continental glory as their creator in-chief. Indeed, the 17-year-old is Barca’s one-man attacking hub, recording four goals and three assists in this season’s Champions League.
Raphinha has frequently benefited from Lamine Yamal’s creativity, but the Brazilian will have to be in sharper shooting form than he was against Real Madrid in the Copa del Rey final when he was wayward.
Pedri, on the other hand, was in excellent form against Real Madrid, finding the back of the net with a stunning strike. Gavi and Frenkie de Jong will look to control the midfield on Wednesday night.
Inter will set up to expose Barcelona’s high defensive line with Lautaro Martínez sure to be a threat. The Argentinean forward has scored eight times in the Champions League this season and was key against Bayern Munich in the previous round (we gave him his flowers – here.)
At his best, Nicolo Barella is one of the best two-way midfielders in Europe. However, Inter have looked tired in central midfield in recent weeks, meaning there’s a risk they could be overrun by Barcelona.
To get out from the back, Inter will need direct running and pace in the wide areas which is where Carlos Augusto or Federico Dimarco could be so important down the left side.
Team news
Robert Lewandowski will miss Barcelona’s meeting with Inter through injury meaning Ferran Torres will lead the line for the Catalans as he did in the Copa del Rey final.
Marc Casadó and Marc Bernal are also sidelined with Alex Balde a doubt. Marc-André ter Stegen might be back on the bench after missing much of the season, but Wojciech Szczęsny is expected to start.
Marcus Thuram’s absence has been keenly felt in recent matches. Inter will be made to sweat on the attacker’s fitness before Wednesday’s game. Benjamin Pavard is definitely ruled out, though.
Prediction
Barcelona have been almost irrepressible since the turn of the year, particularly at home, and will have been buoyed by last Saturday’s success in the Copa final. We think that form will probably continue but with Inter another side who’ve been at their best in Europe this season, the away side might be do enough to keep next week’s second leg interesting: Barcelona 2-1 Inter.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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