The stakes haven’t been larger for Barcelona in a very long time now as they’re heading into Tuesday evening’s conflict in Milan.
For the primary time in years, the Catalans are 90 minutes away from sealing a spot within the remaining of the UEFA Champions League and redemption appears to be simply across the nook.
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However once more, so are Inter Milan and the Italians may have the house benefit within the all-important second leg.
What’s extra, is that they’ll have each Lautaro Martinez and Benjamin Pavard match whereas Barcelona will as soon as once more .
A number of elements will affect the outcome tomorrow evening, however Barcelona have management over crucial one – the soccer performed on the sector.
There isn’t a denying that the Catalans are the higher crew heading into the sport, and they’re going to hope it is sufficient to recover from the road and seal a spot within the elusive UCL finale.
Barça Common brings you three speaking factors forward of Inter Milan vs Barcelona.
A double defensive blow
Barcelona’s scenario on the full-back entrance is much from very best heading into the second leg of the UEFA Champions League semifinal towards Inter Milan tomorrow evening.
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Alejandro Balde missed the primary leg by means of an harm and was at all times anticipated to make it again in time to face the Italian giants for the reverse fixture.
His restoration, nonetheless, has not fairly gone to plan and the teenager remains to be just a few days away from returning to finish health. Tomorrow evening, Barcelona will thus be with out their star left-back as soon as extra.
To make issues worse, Jules Kounde left the sector injured within the first leg with a niggle and can be unavailable for the reverse leg, leaving Barcelona with out each of their prime full-backs forward of the sport.
It’s a huge blow to Barcelona’s attacking possibilities towards Inter, particularly with Balde not recovering, and protecting the gaping holes shall be an enormous activity for Hansi Flick.
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Eric Garcia and Gerard Martin might begin at proper and left-back respectively, however it’s secure to say that the scenario is much from very best forward of crucial recreation of the season.
A query of taking possibilities
Again and able to go. (Picture by Pedro Salado/Getty Photos)
The one metric that matches Barcelona and the Nerrazzuri after the primary 90 minutes at Montjuic is the scoreline, and it’s soccer, that’s all that issues.
The metric, nonetheless, doesn’t do justice to the sport that unfolded adequately for there was a stark distinction between Barcelona and Inter Milan by way of the standard and amount of possibilities created.
Flick’s males have been superior with their likelihood creation, had 19 pictures on the evening, and created considerably larger xG on the evening. Their effectivity, notably within the first half, was dreadful.
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Inter, in the meantime, buried each likelihood that got here their means and scored low-probability objectives towards all odds. In the end, they earned the ticket again house with a beneficial draw to take again with them.
On the semifinal degree of the UEFA Champions League, possibilities don’t come usually. Barcelona, with all their attacking may, will undoubtedly open up the hosts’ backline on events tomorrow, however all that can matter shall be their medical ending.
Robert Lewandowski’s return to health, on that entrance, comes as a welcome growth. For the likes of Lamine Yamal, Raphinha, Ferran Torres, and even Dani Olmo, nonetheless, taking their possibilities will maintain the important thing to the victory.
Time to extinguish ghosts of the previous
It was precisely six years in the past, to the day, that Barcelona final took to the sector within the semifinal of the UEFA Champions League.
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On the time, they walked in with their heads held excessive defending a 3-0 lead, and took to the sector at Anfield for an evening that will go down in historical past as one among their best embarrassments.
There are a number of parallels between that season and the present one for Barcelona, proper from the crew as soon as once more being on the cusp of a treble to them staring a spot within the remaining within the eye.
This time, nonetheless, the Catalans should look to avenge the defeat they suffered years in the past on this stage of the competitors, for a spot within the remaining of the UCL is barely a whisker away.
The crew now could be starkly completely different to the one which began at Anfield, the gamers are youthful, extra recent, and even in a far superior frame of mind. Barcelona are not the delicate wreck that they have been on the time, and one will hope that holds the important thing.
A win tomorrow shall be a press release that Barcelona have extinguished the ghosts of the previous. They are going to be sporting a really related jersey color to the one they misplaced to Liverpool, however the objective shall be to have fun after the 90 minutes at San Siro and rewrite historical past.
