The defending European champions will come up against the Miners in the Inter Milan vs Schalke match this evening, and even without the Special One Mourinho, Inter still have a chance to triumph.
The Serie A title holders were metamorphosed into an untouchable side last season, after they grabbed the treble under the leadership of Coach Jose Mourinho. The Portuguese manager led the club to their third European title, and their journey to continental success was not the easiest one of all. Inter faced superpowers Barcelona, Chelsea and Bayern Munich on their way to the top, yet in some ways, they were just too commanding for their giant opponents.
After Mourinho left Inter Milan to take on new duties at Real Madrid, the Italians began to sink under the direction of former Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez. Unsatisfying results in the league and lack of buoyancy eventually pushed the club’s leaders to elect a new manager: Leonardo.
The latter has made remarkable efforts to revive the falling side, but at this point, it is still unknown if he really is powerful enough to help Inter make a unique achievement by receiving Champions League glory once again. Regardless, he is advised to undertake his responsibilities bit by bit, and so far, he has shown good signs in Europe. There were scares that the Nerazzurri were going to suffer a Round of 16 exit when they faced Bayern Munich in their return-leg encounter, being already down by a goal to nil from their first-leg home defeat.
Nevertheless, at the surprise of many, Leonardo’s men battled the Germans with all they had left; and by the time the referee blew his final whistle, they were leading Bayern 3-2: a score line good enough to progress into the quarterfinals. It makes sense to believe that not many teams could have repressed the 2010 Champions League finalists the way Inter did, and taking this idea into consideration, there is certainly much more that the football audience can expect from the 2010 FIFA Club World Cup winners.
Unfortunately, predicting the outcome of the Inter Milan vs Schalke clash in the quarterfinals this evening is far from an easy thing to do, in view of the Italians’ humiliating 3-0 defeat to AC Milan at the weekend. Were Inter players keeping their strength for their Champions League game? Did they prioritize their European match over their league battle?
These are questions that could clearly rise in one’s mind, but the important thing for Manager Leonardo right now is to obviously prevent another consecutive loss that would see his team’s dream of defending their Champions League title turn into a huge doubt. With former Real Madrid legend Raul set to lead Schalke’s front, the Inter defence will need to perform with vigilance. Happily for the hosts, their star striker Diego Milito has been declared fit to be in action, while his injured team mates Walter Samuel and David Suazo are ineligible to play, and defender Lucio is on suspension.
After Mourinho left Inter Milan to take on new duties at Real Madrid, the Italians began to sink under the direction of former Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez. Unsatisfying results in the league and lack of buoyancy eventually pushed the club’s leaders to elect a new manager: Leonardo.
The latter has made remarkable efforts to revive the falling side, but at this point, it is still unknown if he really is powerful enough to help Inter make a unique achievement by receiving Champions League glory once again. Regardless, he is advised to undertake his responsibilities bit by bit, and so far, he has shown good signs in Europe. There were scares that the Nerazzurri were going to suffer a Round of 16 exit when they faced Bayern Munich in their return-leg encounter, being already down by a goal to nil from their first-leg home defeat.
Nevertheless, at the surprise of many, Leonardo’s men battled the Germans with all they had left; and by the time the referee blew his final whistle, they were leading Bayern 3-2: a score line good enough to progress into the quarterfinals. It makes sense to believe that not many teams could have repressed the 2010 Champions League finalists the way Inter did, and taking this idea into consideration, there is certainly much more that the football audience can expect from the 2010 FIFA Club World Cup winners.
Unfortunately, predicting the outcome of the Inter Milan vs Schalke clash in the quarterfinals this evening is far from an easy thing to do, in view of the Italians’ humiliating 3-0 defeat to AC Milan at the weekend. Were Inter players keeping their strength for their Champions League game? Did they prioritize their European match over their league battle?
These are questions that could clearly rise in one’s mind, but the important thing for Manager Leonardo right now is to obviously prevent another consecutive loss that would see his team’s dream of defending their Champions League title turn into a huge doubt. With former Real Madrid legend Raul set to lead Schalke’s front, the Inter defence will need to perform with vigilance. Happily for the hosts, their star striker Diego Milito has been declared fit to be in action, while his injured team mates Walter Samuel and David Suazo are ineligible to play, and defender Lucio is on suspension.
