Wednesday Champions League Action
We now are at the Semi-Final stages of the Champions League and on Wednesday we have the second of them taking place from the Olimpic Lluis Companys where Barcelona will host Inter. The last time the two sides met here was back in 2022 where it ended 3-3 so can we expect another goal fest this time. Hans-Dieter Flick’s side beat Dortmund in the Quarter-Finals where the damage was done at home in the first leg where they won 4-0 thanks to goals from Raphina, Yamal and then a brace by Lewandowski. The return leg they lost 3-1 but clearly the tie was in safekeeping after the first leg.
The Catalan Club will arrive at this first leg contest on the back of winning the Copa del Rey Final where they beat Real Madrid. They took the lead on 28 minutes when Pedri scored a great goal with his right foot from outside the box to the top left corner. It wasn’t till the 70th minute when the equaliser came from Kylian Mbappe from a free kick and then just seven minutes later Madrid took the lead with a header from Aurelien Tchouameni. Barcelona didn’t have long left to rescue the chance of silverware but in the 84th minute Ferran Torres brought the Final to 2-2 so extra time was needed. Both teams were conservative but in the 116th minute Jules Kounde made it 3-2 to Barcelona which gave them the Copa del Rey title. They are four points clear at the top of La Liga also with just five fixtures remaining.
The visitors Inter beat Bayern Munich in their Quarter-Final where they won 1-2 in Germany thanks to goals from Frattesi and Martinez and then for the return leg in Milan they drew 2-2 thanks to goals from Pavard and Martinez again making it 4-3 on aggregate to the Italian side. Since that game Simone Inzaghi’s team have have lost their next three games away at Bologna (1-0) in the league, got knocked out of the Coppa Italia in the Semi-Finals to rivals AC Milan (4-1 on aggregate) and then back in the league losing at home to Roma (0-1). They are now three points behind leaders Napoli with four matches of the Italian season remaining.
The Italian side looked to have Serie A in their hands but after two back to back defeats they will now find themselves on the chase. We can see Inzaghi playing the same duo upfront here as they did against Bayern, captain Lautaro Martinez and Marcus Thuram. If they can go back to Italy with a draw that would help massively in their quest for Champions League honours. Kick off Wednesday 20.00pm, Live on TNT Sports 1.
Match Betting Odds:
Credit Card Gambling Sites: Barcelona 8/13, Inter 4/1 and the Draw 32/10
Non UK Gambling Sites: Barcelona 4/6, Inter 4/1 and the Draw 31/10
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