Barcelona V Inter Milan Football Online Preview: Champions League

Barcelona v Inter Milan

24th November, 2009

Camp Nou

Kick-Off: 19:45 GMT / 20:45 CET

Barcelona

Last year's Champions League winners will be heading into this Barcelona vs Inter clash with a real crisis of form by their standards.

After an incredible start to the season that saw the La Liga and Champions League champions win the UEFA Super Cup and then all of the first six La Liga matches of the season, Barcelona have now hit something of a speed-bump in both their domestic and continental form.

A draw in the first Inter v Barcelona fixture was unsurprising enough, but a loss in front of a home crowd at Camp Nou to Rubin Kazan was something unheard of for the Catalan club, and one of the biggest upsets in the history of the Champions League.

An away draw to conquerors Rubin Kazan in the Champions League, and away draws against Osasuna, and most recently, to Athletic Bilbao in the La Liga on Saturday has left Barca in a somewhat precarious situation in both competitions.

Barca have now forfeited their league lead to rivals Real Madrid after their most recent result, and their position in the Champions League group stages is potentially even more worrisome.

After four matches played, Barcelona find themselves third in the group, equal on five points with second placed Kazan (but below due to UEFA rules), and only one point ahead of last-placed Dynamo Kiev whilst trailing Inter by two.

Therefore, a result in this Barcelona v Inter match will be absolutely crucial for last year's competition winners.

But with swine flu symptoms affecting Rafael Márquez, Yaya Touré and Eric Abidal, with Zlatan Ibrahimovic doubtful due to a hamstring strain, and with star Lionel Messi likely to miss the match owing to a thigh injury picked up in the match against Athletic, all the bad news could not have come at a worse time for Barcelona.

Inter Milan

Whilst things are going downhill for Barcelona, the mood in the Inter Milan must certainly be considered positive.

The Serie A champions brushed aside Bologna on Saturday with a 3-1 scoreline to stretch their lead at the top of Serie A ladder to five points over second-placed Juventus.

And in spite of an away draw against Rubin Kazan, as well as home draws with both Dynamo Kiev and Barcelona, Inter Milan find themselves top of their group on six points, after an away win against Dynamo Kiev in their most recent outing.

But in spite of leading Group F, Inter will be anything but complacent. This huge Barcelona vs Inter Milan match will be followed by a home clash against Rubin Kazan, and so Internazionale will certainly have to be on the ball in order to progress to the latter stages of the Champions League competition.

Prediction

The last Barcelona vs Inter Milan clash at the Camp Nou came back in 2003 in the Champions League, with Barca running out 3-0 winners.

On current form, however, this result doesn't look to repeat itself on Tuesday night. A struggling Barcelona side is one thing, but a struggling Barcelona side potentially without both Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Lionel Messi is another matter completely.

As hosts, Barcelona are still favourites to win in betting with the bookmakers. But with all that's happening at the moment at Barca, it may be hard to see how the side could earn anything other than a draw against the generally-impressive Inter side on Tuesday night.

Barcelona v Inter Milan Prediction: Barca 1 - Inter 1

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Check out our Wednesday night previews too with Man Utd vs Besiktas and Chelsea vs Porto for two great matches!