Chelsea vs Inter Milan: Champions League Preview and Predicition

Published by William | Filed under Champions League, Football (aka soccer), Predictions, Previews

Inter travels to Stamford Bridge on Tuesday with a slim 2-1 advantage ahead of their second leg fixture with Chelsea.

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3/16 19:45 GMT Inter Milan at Chelsea – Odds | Stats


Jose Mourinho makes his highly anticipated return to Stamford Bridge this Tuesday when Inter Milan come to town to take on his old club, Chelsea. Inter comes into the match with a 2-1 advantage after winning the first leg in San Siro and will have to defend against the red hot Didier Drogba and co. if they wish to advance out of the Champions League round of 16 for the first time in 3 seasons.


Chelsea:


Chelsea comes into this tie on a 2 match winning streak but that is a bit deceiving considering how they performed in the month of February. They were 3-1-3 with losses to Manchester City, Inter, and Everton, as well as a 1-1 draw to Premiership bottomfeeder Hull City. However, despite the poor month, the Champions League has been Chelsea’s stage to shine in past years, having failed to make it to the semifinals only once in the last 6 years as well as making it to the finals in 2008. They were considered by many as the favorites to hoist this year’s trophy and after sweeping through the group stage, they looked on track to do the same. Now they must overcome the 2-1 deficit at home if they wish to have any chance of bringing the Champions League trophy to Stamford Bridge for the first time ever. On the injury front, Chelsea has what could prove to be a match deciding injury at keeper with both Petr Cech and Henrique Hilario questionable for the match. If neither of them are ready to go, look for Ross Turnball to get the nod in goal. Yuri Zhirkov, , Ricardo Carvalho, and Deco are expected to be available for the match after recovering from injury while Jose Bosingwa, Ashley Cole, and Michael Essien are all to miss.


Inter Milan:


Inter can’t really ask for much more as they head into the second leg at Stamford bridge with a 2-1 advantage. Now the question remains what sort of lineup will Mourinho field? He may opt to field a more defense minded XI with the lead but after their disappointing 3-1 defeat to Calcio Catania this weekend, questions have arose about the susceptibility in their back line. I think to sit back on their heels and shoot for the 0-0 draw would be a mistake, especially since one goal may very well be the dagger they need to send them through to the quarterfinals. However, their goal scoring capabilities took a bit of hit when it was confirmed 19- year old striker Mario Ballotelli will not be available as a result of injuries. On a positive note, Marco Materazzi is expected to return Inter’s lineup for the Tuesday tie.


Prediction:


Inter heads into the match with the 2-1 but they also head into the match experiencing a bit of a dip in form since their victory over Chelsea a fortnight ago. Chelsea need only one goal to take the lead thanks to their away goal at San Siro and with Inter performing the way they have in recent weeks, I think they may be getting more than 1 in the highly anticipated return leg. I like Chelsea to move forward 3-2 on aggregate.


Pick:


Chelsea 2 – 0 Inter Milan


Bet of the Match:


Chelsea at 1.63 from Betsson