UEFA CL 2018-19 – Inter Milan vs Tottenham Hotspur Match Preview
The Champions League weeks are back and we’re got a good one here in Italy! Inter Milan are back in the UCL after a 6 year absence as they take on England’s Tottenham Hotspur in a meeting where many would say is between two teams that will be fighting for that second place in the group. Neither team are showing good form right now so a win is a MUST for both!
Key Facts
Inter Milan have started the season very sloppy. They’ve only picked up 4 points from 12 to start and have a 1W 1D 2L record (winless at Home 1D 1L). They’re coming off a very frustrating loss to Parma 0-1.
Star striker Mauro Icardi is yet to score this season.
Ivan Perisic is Inter’s top scorer with 2 goals.
This is Inter’s first Champions League game since February 2012 so the fans will be fired up and we can expect a hot start from Inter.
Inter and Tottenham have met in the Champions League in 2010-11 season. Inter won the home tie 4-3 and lost in London 3-1. Very high scoring games.
These clubs have also met in the 2012-13 Europa League knockouts. Spurs won the home tie 3-0 while Inter won their home tie 4-1. Once again very high scoring matches
Tottenham have started the season with 3 straight wins, but then faltered with 2 straight defeats to Watford and Liverpool. Injuries have plagued this side.
2 of the 4 Inter games have had an over 2.5 while all 5 Tottenham games have had an over 2.5 goals mark hit.
Neither team have been able to defend well so far this season. Inter only have one clean sheet in 4 games while Spurs have one clean sheet in 5 games.
Tottenham’s top scorer is Lucas Moura with 3, Harry Kane has 2 goals but been out of form recently.
Team News
Inter Milan: Inter have some bad news as Sime Vrsaljko will not be featuring in this match due to a knee injury therefore we should see D’Ambrosio who also got hurt but could return in time for the Spurs clash. Worst case scenario Asamoah may have to fill at RB which instantly weakens Inter’s RB position massively. We will most likely Icardi start again after coming off the bench against Parma due to rest reasons probably. Luciano Spalletti has been using a 4-2-3-1 in the recent games so we should expect that to continue. Other than Vrsaljko’s injury and a possible D’Ambrosio injury there’s nothing to report. Expect a near full strength side to be fielded by Spalletti.
Tottenham Hotspur: Tottenham are also missing some key players. Firstly, captain and no1 keeper Hugo Lloris is still out and could be out for a few games as Michel Vorm will slot in for him again and Vorm has not been reliable so far, made a few costly mistakes including the one that let Liverpool take the lead on Saturday. Harry Winks is healthy but will probably not start a 2nd straight match in 3 days, he still is trying to get to 100% fitness therefore we can definitely expect changes from team that featured during the weekend. Dele Alli is also in massive doubt to play and so is Moussa Sissoko. One good news is that Son Heung Min is in contention to start. These injuries have definitely come at a wrong time for Tottenham as they go to Inter away and we know how fired up that fanbase will be. We could see a 3 at the back formation being brought back too with Davinson Sanchez potentially starting alongside Vertonghen and Aldeiweireld just to sure up the backline since Inter are going to put a lot of pressure on Spurs.
Betting Tips and Predictions
It’s a tough one to predict so we’ll go with the trends and take the over 2.5 goals at 2.05. Historically these teams have put up some very high scoring games (4-3 3-1 3-0 4-1) and this year neither team are showing solid defensive abilities, both sides tend to concede to everyone. There’s enough attacking threat to give us an entertaining game with goals. BTTS – Yes at 1.80 is also worth the look since neither team can actually keep a clean sheet this season. Tottenham are favoured to win this match but with the injuries that they have missing Alli, Lloris, Sissoko this seriously becomes a daunting task for them. Inter are no joke at San Siro regardless of how poor they’ve been in Serie A. First Uefa CL night in 6 years, the fans will be fired up and the team should be able to put up a solid performance for them. Plus Icardi has to break his duck eventually. On paper Spurs are hardly better than Inter and Inter are tipped as home underdogs which is why our pick is Inter to win 2-1. Inter AH 0.0 at 2.10 is definitely another bet worth the money. If it’s a draw then money’s back. If you want higher odds just take the Inter win at 3.00. All odds based on TonyBet and are subject to change!
Match Odds (TonyBet)
Inter Milan Win – 3.00
Draw – 3.20
