Group D | Matchday 6
The whites seek to finish first in their group against Inter to avoid the ‘cocos’ in the second round of the Champions League
Clash of locomotives at the Santiago Bernabéu. Real Madrid and Inter, already classified for the last 16 of the Champions League and immersed in a streak of extraordinary results, meet at the Chamartín Coliseum with the leadership of their group in contention. A key issue to ensure a more favorable crossing in the first round of qualifying rounds, since demon duels await those who finish as second against the superpowers of the continent. Scaring away those devils, or at least delaying the moment of looking into their eyes, would serve to smooth the journey to the Krestovski Stadium in Saint Petersburg, where a tournament in which whites aspire to stick will be resolved on May 28 next year his fourteenth crown.
Leader with twelve points, two more than Inter, Real Madrid would be worth the tie to finish at the top a phase that opened with a pyrrhic victory at San Siro, but which was twisted in a row with the unexpected stumble in front of the Sheriff at the Santiago Bernabéu. But Carlo Ancelotti’s team recovered from that embarrassment with the authority it is accustomed to in its fetish competition and reaches the last day with its homework almost done. The icing on the cake is missing from that first position that would allow him to avoid Manchester City, Liverpool, Ajax, Bayern Munich and Manchester United in the December 13 draw, all of which have already certified their status as seeds, as well as the current one. champion Chelsea or Juventus.
Rarely has the Champions League configured a hype as poisonous as the one that the survivors of a first phase in which PSG is the only major favorite who has failed to set the pace will find themselves in Nyon next Monday. For this reason, finishing as first carries a prize this time that goes far beyond guaranteeing the dispute of the return at home. It can mean the difference between having to climb a hill or being forced to climb an eight thousand.
Real Madrid couldn’t imagine a better way to get there. Packed after chaining eight consecutive wins that bring the count of undefeated matches to eleven among all the competitions that accumulate, the Chamartín team only suffers with the loss of Benzema, whose muscle problem in the hamstrings of his left leg will prevent him from confronting the Neroazzurro team , although it is not ruled out for Sunday’s derby against Atlético.
Rope for Jovic
The lack of the French striker will transfer offensive responsibility to Vinicius, as decisive in Europe as in the League, and to Jovic, who has been opened a gap to claim when he had fallen into oblivion. The goal and the assistance of the striker against Real Sociedad have relieved the Serbian, who already shone three seasons ago against Inter, when a goal from him served for Eintracht Frankfurt to get off the Italian squad in the second round of Europe League.
For the rest, Ancelotti will once again entrust himself to Courtois’ sobriety under the sticks, to the forcefulness of Militao and Alaba in the rear, to the solidity of Carvajal and Mendy in the lanes, to the trade and class of his holy trinity of midfielders and to the overflow of Rodrygo to continue stretching the rope of a team determined to challenge the doctrine on rotations.
Full of morale also comes Inter, who adds the same series of games without knowing the defeat that Real Madrid since succumbing to Lazio in mid-October: eleven. Two draws and nine wins, the last five without interruption, since that meeting have been enshrined in Simone Inzaghi’s group, who have not even conceded a goal in their four most recent appearances against Shakhtar, Venezia, Spezia and Roma. A winning dynamic that has served the current Italian champion to place second in Serie A, just one point behind Milan, and reach the outcome of the group stage of the Champions League with his passport to the second round sealed, after ten years without be among the 16 best teams on the continent.
The main absence of Inter is the Argentine Joaquín Correa, who was injured on Saturday against Roma. On the other hand, Inzaghi recovers the Dutch Stefan De Vrij, who will be a substitute in a defense of three centrals that already tied Real Madrid in short three months ago in San Siro, until Rodrygo unbalanced the shock on the horn to pass from Camavinga.
Lineups
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Real Madrid:
Courtois, Carvajal, Militao, Alaba, Mendy, Casemiro, Modric, Kroos, Rodrygo, Jovic and Vinicius. -
Inter:
Handanovic, D’Ambrosio, Skriniar, Bastoni, Dumfries, Barella, Brozovic, Çalhanoglu, Perisic, Lautaro Martínez and Dzeko. -
Referee:
Felix Brych (Germany). -
Hour:
21:00 h. -
Stadium:
Santiago Bernabeu. -
TV:
Movistar Champions League 1.
.