Inter did not follow in the footsteps of their Milan cousins in the first leg of the Champions League round of 16 against Feyenoord, easily conquering the traditionally difficult De Kuip stadium in Rotterdam and effectively securing their place in the quarterfinals. In the Netherlands last Wednesday, the so-called “ThuLa” duo of strikers Thuram and Lautaro Martinez took center stage: with a goal apiece (0-2), the Frenchman and the Argentine allowed Simone Inzaghi—the Piacenza-born coach who has now become the most successful Nerazzurri coach in the Champions League, overtaking Roberto Mancini—to ” book their place among the top eight in Europe.
Inter put in an almost flawless performance in the Netherlands, as evidenced by the xG (2.25 for the Italian champions): the only regret is Zielinski’s missed penalty, which could have made it 3-0 and rounded off the result. In any case, a comeback by Feyenoord at San Siro seems unlikely—Robin van Persie’s men would need to win by at least three goals—although Inter must not run the risk of being “distracted” by the league. Thanks to their hard-fought victory over bottom-of-the-table Monza (3-2) last Saturday, Lautaro Martinez and his teammates have maintained their lead at the top of the table, but Napoli and Atalanta – the latter being the Nerazzurri’s next opponent – remain hot on their heels (the Azzurri are one point behind and the Bergamaschi are three points behind).
Inzaghi’s rotation
Another pitfall for Inzaghi could be fatigue due to the busy schedule: Inter made a few defensive mistakes against Monza, even going two goals down.
The coach will therefore try to pace his players against Feyenoord, helped by an injury list that is slowly clearing up. Sommer will return in goal, but Carlos Augusto is also back available. In midfield, Asllani and Calhanoglu are vying for a place—the Turkish player, despite still being at half strength, played a great game against Monza—while in attack, Taremi will give Lautaro a breather. Feyenoord’s injury list remains very long: van Persie will be back from the first leg, but Bijlow, Gonzalez, Lotomba, Nieuwkoop, Trauner, Timber, Hwang In-beom, Milambo, Nadje, Stengs, Osman, and Zerrouki are all unavailable. The Rotterdam club, fifth in the Eredivisie, did not play at the weekend: their league match against Groningen was postponed.
Odds comparison
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The prediction
The match at San Siro should not hold any surprises. Feyenoord, still struggling with injuries, does not seem to have any chance of causing Inter any trouble and reopening the qualification debate. Especially away from home, where the Dutch are historically less formidable. Despite the turnover and the delicate Scudetto challenge with Atalanta on the horizon, the Nerazzurri should win the return leg without any problems, and it cannot be ruled out that they will also keep a clean sheet.
Probable line-ups for Inter-Feyenoord
INTER (3-5-2): Sommer; Pavard, Acerbi, Bisseck; Dumfries, Frattesi, Calhanoglu, Mkhitaryan, Carlos Augusto; Thuram, Taremi.
FEYENOORD (4-2-3-1): Wellenreuther; Read, Beelen, Hancko, Hugo Bueno; Moder, Smal; Hadj Moussa, Sliti, Ivanusec; Carranza.