Inter Milan have further boosted their confidence ahead of the Champions League quarter-final second leg against FC Bayern at the San Siro on Wednesday night (21:00 CEST). Coach Simone Inzaghi’s men enjoyed a comfortable 3-1 victory at home to 15th-placed Cagliari Calcio in Serie A on Saturday evening. The Nerazzurri extended their unbeaten run in all competitions to 12 games and maintained their lead at the top of the Italian league ahead of Napoli and Juventus.
Martínez scores in style again
Inzaghi made six changes to his starting line-up from the 2-1 victory in Munich last Tuesday, with only goalkeeper Yann Sommer, Carlos Augusto, Hakan Çalhanoglu, Nicolò Barella and Lautaro Martínez surviving. His team remained lethal in front of goal against the Sardinians and quickly converted their superiority into a two-goal lead through Marko Arnautović and Martínez inside the first 26 minutes. The Argentinian again shone with some artistic play, as he did at the Allianz Arena – scoring with a sublime lob before going close with an overhead kick just before the break. Cagliari’s Roberto Piccoli reduced the deficit in the 48th minute, but German international Yann Aurel Bisseck made it 3-1 with a header just seven minutes later, and that’s how it finished at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza.
The result also means Inter are now unbeaten in 13 consecutive home games – a run Bayern will have to end this Wednesday in the eagerly anticipated quarter-final return leg.
“We knew this match wouldn’t be easy, we wanted to win and we did that very well,” summarised coach Inzaghi on Saturday. “We played 49 matches last season, this is our 48th and it’s only April 12th. We’re playing phenomenally this year and go into the meeting with Bayern with a lot of confidence, knowing that we’re playing against a very strong side. It’s not a case of managing, but playing a great game with determination.”
Inter line-up against Cagliari: Sommer – Bisseck, de Vrij, Carlos Augusto – Zalewski (Bastoni 67’), Frattesi, Çalhanoglu (Asllani 84’), Barella, Dimarco (Darmian 60’) – Arnautović (Correa 59’), Martínez (Thuram 67’).
You can read the analysis of Bayern’s dress rehearsal against Borussia Dortmund on Saturday evening here:
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