Inter Milan vs Atletico Madrid preview
The month of February always signals the start of a hectic schedule as teams start preparing for the end of the season. This cycle begins with the UEFA Champions League knockout games. And with the biggest club tournament returning, the remaining 16 teams compete to be crowned as kings of Europe. Last season, Inter Milan came on the cusp of being bestowed with the honour. However, they came up short against Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City. This season, though, they are in even better form and face Atletico Madrid for a spot in the quarter-finals.
Both the teams have had a brilliant history in the competition and have forged their reputations as opponents that teams find very frustrating to play against. This means they have to be at their very best, as both have the same strengths and weaknesses.
Inter Milan are currently top of the Serie A table with a nine-point lead over second-placed Juventus. The show’s star has undoubtedly been Lautaro Martinez, scoring 23 goals in all competitions. Inter Milan have played like champions in the sense that they have won several games where they were not at their best just by grabbing the opportune moments. According to stats from xvalue, Simone Inzaghi’s men were only expected to win 51.84 points but have managed to win 63 points, a great overperformance on the metric.
Meanwhile, Atletico Madrid are having another solid season by their standards. Manager Diego Simeone has found a perfect strategy that has harnessed the talents of Alvaro Morata and Antoine Griezmann, who have done the bulk of scoring and creating for the team. The team is ranked the best in scoring accuracy and second in goal conversion in La Liga.
Another area where Simone has reinvented himself is devising tactics that accommodate some features of Gegenpressing. This is reflected in the fact that they are the third-best team in the league on the Buildup Disruption Percentage (BDP).
Inter Milan vs Atletico Madrid predicted lineups
Inter Milan lineup
Inter Milan have had few injury concerns this season with only Juan Cuardado a long term absentee. This means that Inzaghi will have an almost fit squad to choose from. Inter also had a game against bottom-ranked Salernitana at the weekend, allowing them to rest several key players who will be back for the Champions League tie.
The main onus for the team will be on the attacking duo of Martinez and Marcus Thuram, with Hakan Calhanoglu, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, and Federico Dimarco shouldering the responsibility in the middle of the pitch.
Inter Milan starting XI: Sommer; Pavard, Acerbi, Bastoni; Darmian, Barella, Calhanoglu, Mkhitaryan, Dimarco; Thuram, Martinez
Atletico Madrid lineup
Simeone’s side suffered a major blow when top scorer Alvaro Morata suffered an injury against Sevilla the previous weekend. He didn’t play the recent game against Las Palmas and will likely miss the first leg against Inter, too. Memphis Depay or Angel Correa, both of whom scored against Las Palmas, will take Morata’s place on the team. Other injury concerns for the club are Gabriel Paulista and Thomas Lemar.
Marcos Llorente and Koke will be tasked with providing the incisiveness in the midfield, while Correa, who scored a brace at the weekend, could be the preferred replacement for Morata.
Atletico Madrid starting XI: Oblak; Savic, Witsel, Gabriel; Llorente, Barrios, De Paul, Koke, Lino; Griezmann, Correa
Inter Milan vs Atletico Madrid predictions
On paper, Inter Milan appear to have the advantage given their form and the home advantage they will enjoy for the game. However, both teams have, over the years, crafted their reputation as a team that can win a match in an ugly fashion.
The two teams boast of a defence that, on their day, can prove to be insurmountable for even the best attacks. However, Inter have blown away teams left, right, and center this season and looks likely to come away with a win in front of their fans at the San Siro.
FootTheBall predicts a 2-0 win for the Nerazzurri.