Inter and Barcelona are set to meet for the 18th time in Europe’s premier competition
Five-time UCL winners Barcelona travel to northern Italy to play three-time title holders Inter Milan in a tantalising second and deciding leg of their semifinal on Tuesday night.
The Catalan Giants remain on track for a rare treble – LaLiga, Copa del Rey and Champions League titles – but walked away from the opening leg of their Champions League semifinal at the Barcelona Olympic Stadium with just a draw against Inter, leaving them with it all to do on the road in Milan.
Inter, who are bidding to make a second Champions League final in three seasons, will like their chances of getting past the flamboyant LaLiga leaders on home soil. But the Nerazzurri were far from their best on Saturday, forging a slender 1-0 home win against 15th-placed Verona in a domestic Serie A league fixture at the San Siro.
Here is all to know before the semifinal decider between two of Europe’s football superclubs:
Barcelona twice battled back to share a compelling 3-3 draw at home against Inter Milan on April 30.
The Italian side raced to a two-goal lead with superb strikes from Marcus Thuram and Denzel Dumfries before the unstoppable Lamine Yamal pulled Barca back into it with a sublime solo effort.
Ferran Torres levelled for the five-time champions, and although Inter nosed ahead through Dumfries again, a Yann Sommer own goal left the tie on a knife-edge heading into the second leg.
Why is everyone talking about Yamal?
Playing his 100th game at just 17 years and 291 days old, Yamal became the youngest player to score in a UEFA Champions League semifinal against Inter on Wednesday, eclipsing the record set by Kylian Mbappe, who was 18 when he achieved the feat in 2017.
Inter manager Simone Inzaghi said talents like the Barcelona teenager come around only once in a half-century.
“He’s the kind of talent who is born every 50 years, I had never seen him live, and he really impressed me today,” the Inter coach said after Yamal helped Barcelona rally in the action-packed first leg.
Barcelona coach Hansi Flick described his attacking winger as “a genius” after the match.
Before the first leg, Yamal himself was forced to dismiss comparisons to the great Lionel Messi, who played the same position at Barcelona.
“I don’t compare myself to him because I don’t compare myself to anyone – and much less with Messi,” Yamal told reporters.
“So I don’t think the comparison makes sense – with Messi even less. I’m going to enjoy myself, and be myself.”
Yamal said he thought the Argentinian forward was the greatest player of all time.
“I admire him obviously as the best player in history, but I don’t compare myself to him,” he reiterated.
Team news: Barcelona
Barcelona starting defender Jules Kounde is set to miss the Champions League semifinal second leg clash with Inter after he was diagnosed with a hamstring injury on Thursday.
Star striker Robert Lewandowski, who is ahead of schedule on what was expected to be a three-week recovery period from a leg injury, has been declared fit to return but will likely start on the bench, according to Flick.
Goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny is tipped to start against Inter despite first-choice keeper Marc-Andre ter Steg’s return to the first XI in a LaLiga fixture at the weekend after a long injury layoff.
Team news: Inter Milan
Inter head into their second leg showdown at the San Siro with the availability of top scorer Lautaro Martinez highly questionable after the Argentina star suffered a leg injury against Barcelona last Wednesday. Inzaghi will have Mehdi Taremi or Marko Arnautovic on standby to replace Martinez in the starting lineup.
But confidence is growing in the Inter camp that Martinez will play, according to Italian media reports on Monday. Lautaro himself posted a cryptic message on Instagram: a photo of him doing exercises in the gym, captioned with emojis of an hourglass and a battery.
In a separate positive development for Inter, key defender Benjamin Pavard, who missed the first leg of the semifinal against Barca, is set to return to the starting XI, according to reporting from the Italian media outlet Gazzetta.it.
Star midfielder Hakan Calhanoglu is available for selection after sitting out Inter’s 1-0 victory over Verona with a suspension.