Inter make the technical journey to Milan for the first leg of their Champions League semi-final. If the Nerazzurri want to make their first final since completing the treble under Jose Mourinho’s leadership in 2010, they must defeat their local rivals. Now that Simone Inzaghi is in charge of leading Inter to victory, he must make a few crucial choices before the opening match. Here is how Inter may be set up.
GK: Andre Onana – When Tottenham denied Ajax a spot in the final four years ago, I experienced last-second sorrow at this level of the Champions League. Ironically, the Spurs are now considering hiring him.
CB: Matteo Darmian – Why is Darmian, a failure at Manchester United, so close to playing in the Champions League final? The reason is that football is amusing.
CB: Francesco Acerbi – As the season has gone on, Inter’s decision to sign the seasoned defender on a loan from Lazio appears to have been a stroke of genius.
CB: Alessandro Bastoni – He must be thanking his fortunate stars that he chose to remain at Inter last summer despite intense interest from Tottenham. In this article on a capable football team, Spurs have received two more references than they should have.
RM: Denzel Dumfries – Since joining Inter from PSV two years ago, the Dutchman has been perpetually associated with the Inter exit door, but he has solidified his position as an important player on Inzaghi’s team.
CM: Nicolo Barella – Stole the show in both halves of the Inter victory against Benfica in the Champions League quarterfinals. He might become known as one of the top midfielders in the world with one more outstanding performance.
CM: Hakan Calhanoglu – Calhanoglu, who joined Inter after they won the Scudetto and abandoned Milan in the process just before they themselves were named Italian champions, will have a chance at atonement in this match.
CM: Henrikh Mkhitaryan – The Armenian midfielder, who is currently 34 years old, has continued to play since he moved to Italy from England.
LM: Federico Dimarco – One of the finest attacking wingbacks in the world in his day. Do not, under any circumstances, look up his defensive statistics. Not at all. Don’t.
CF: Lautaro Martinez – El Toro has recovered his scoring touch after his comedic displays that somehow led to him winning the World Cup gold medal with Argentina. In his previous three Serie A games, he has scored five goals and provided two assists.
CF: Romelu Lukaku – In a similar vein, Lukaku has recently looked sharp after putting his disastrous World Cup performance behind him and getting back into shape.
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