The prestigious duel will be presented again at the San Siro on Tuesday 6 May, when Inter Milan host Barcelona in the second leg of the 2024/2025 Champions League semi-final. After the first meeting ended in a 3-3 draw in Montjuic, the two teams are now preparing to determine their fate towards the top party.
The first meeting was marked by drama and goal rain. Inter immediately surprised the hosts with Marcus Thuram's goal in the 30th second of the fastest goal in the semifinal history of the Champions League. Denzel Dumfries then scored two additional goals for Inter, even though Barcelona bounced back through Lamine Yamal's beautiful goals and consecutive attacks which made the final score 3-3.
Simone Inzaghi can be satisfied with the result, considering Inter will feature at home in the second leg, where they have a flashy record: unbeaten in the last 15 home games in the Champions League, with 12 wins.
The last time Inter advanced to the final was in the 2009/2010 season, when they also eliminated Barcelona in the semifinals and then won the competition under the direction of Jose Mourinho. Now, Inzaghi hopes that history will repeat itself.
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Barcelona Incar Treble
On the other hand, Hansi Flick's Barcelona still dreams of winning trebles after winning the Spanish Super Cup and Copa del Rey. They also topped the La Liga standings, winning over Real Madrid.
Last weekend's 2-1 win over Real Valladolid confirmed their consistency, with just one defeat in the last 30 matches even in the second leg of the quarter-final against Dortmund which was already undetermined.
Lamine Yamal is in the spotlight after his spectacular goal in the first leg. This magical teenager has scored five goals in the Champions League this season, matching the records previously which could only be achieved by big names such as Kyllian Mbappe and Raul at a young age. Raphinha also contributed 20 goals so far, losing only to Cristiano Ronaldo in one season.
However, Barcelona's away record in the semifinals of the Champions League was quite disappointing. They lost in the last four away semifinals and only won twice out of 13 chances in this round when they played outside the home. In San Siro, they only won once from the last six trips against Inter.
Lautaro Absent, Ter Stegen Returns
Inter Milan are confirmed to have lost their goal engine, Lautaro Martinez, due to a hamstring injury obtained in the first leg. His position is likely to be replaced by Mehdi Taremi or Marko Arnautovic. Benjamin Pavard also had to be sidelined due to injury.
However, Hakan Calhanoglu is ready to return to strengthening midfield after being absent in Serie A due to suspension. Key players such as Dumfries, Mkhitaryan, and Sommer will return to the starting XI after being rested in a narrow 1-0 win over Verona.
Barcelona also rotated last weekend, in order to maintain the fitness of the main players for this match and El Clasico this weekend. Marc-Andre ter Stegen returns after recovering from a long injury, but his position is likely to be filled again by Wojciech Szczesny at the San Siro.
Jules Kunde is ruled out, while Robert Lewandowski and Alejandro Balde are recovering and have the opportunity to sit on the bench.
With the aggregate score still strong and the final ticket in sight, this match will certainly offer drama, high tension, and world-class quality.
Estimated Lineup Of Players
Inter Milan (3-5-2):Sommer; Bisseck, Acerbi, Bastoni; Dumfries, Barella, Calhanoglu, Mkhitaryan, Dimarco; Arnautovic, Thuram
Barcelona (4-2-3-1):Szczesny; Garcia, Araujo, Cubarsi, Martinez; De Jong, Pedri; Yamal, Olmo, Raphinha; Torres
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