Champions League Preview: Bayern Munich vs Inter – Team News, Line-ups & Prediction | OneFootball

All Europe turns its eyes to the Allianz Arena on Tuesday as Bayern Munich and Inter go head-to-head in the first leg of their blockbuster Champions League quarter-final tie. Both teams are on the verge of conquering their domestic championships, but climbing to the continent’s throne stands highly on their priority list.

Bayern Munich inched ever closer to dethroning Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga with a 3-1 win at Augsburg last Friday. Vincent Kompany’s charges preserved a six-point cushion at the table’s summit and maintained a feel-good factor ahead of this heavyweight showdown.

Not since lifting the crown in 2020 have the Bavarians contested the grand final, with three of their last four Champions League campaigns hitting a brick wall at this hurdle. Therefore, the Germans must overcome a psychological barrier to get past Inter and come within striking distance of winning the double in Kompany’s first year in the dugout.

Like their hosts, Simone Inzaghi’s men remain in contention on multiple fronts, vying for a first ‘treble’ since 2010 under Jose Mourinho. Three points clear of runners-up Napoli in Serie A, Inter are potentially 90 minutes away from reaching the Coppa Italia showpiece following a 1-1 first-leg draw in a titanic semi-final tie against Milan.

However, Inter’s superb domestic exploits pale in comparison to their continental dream. The reigning Scudetto holders are keen to make amends for a 2023 heartbreak against Manchester City and bring home only the fourth European Cup/Champions League title.

Match Preview

Bayern Munich

As aforementioned, Bayern Munich’s recent European runs have often crumbled at this stage. They had lost three consecutive quarter-final ties before overcoming Arsenal last season, only for eventual winners Real Madrid to beat them in the semis. Therefore, recent history doesn’t favor the Bavarians.

However, Kompany’s charges have been a force to be reckoned with in Munich, going unbeaten across their last 22 home outings in the Champions League (W17, D5). Ominously for the home faithful, Bayern Munich’s most recent European loss on this ground came in the 2021 quarter-final first leg against Paris Saint-Germain.

Despite recent quarter-final setbacks, Bayern Munich boast a decent-looking 62% win ratio across 34 historic appearances at this stage of the competition (W21, L13). They can draw further confidence from winning three of their last four competitive home matches (L1), netting 3+ goals in each victory.

Inter

As Italy’s only remaining representative in the Champions League, Inter must cope with a significant burden as they aim to defend Serie A’s dignity after Atalanta, Juventus, and Milan all crashed out of Europe’s top table. However, the history books paint a bleak picture for the Italians.

Inter have failed to make it out of the quarter-final stage in four of their seven appearances in the Champions League era. Furthermore, they’ve stuttered on German soil, as most recently witnessed by a narrow 1-0 defeat at Bayer Leverkusen in this season’s league phase.

That result added to Inter’s underwhelming away record against Bundesliga opposition (W6, D8, L9), highlighting the size of the task awaiting Inzaghi’s side this midweek. Inzaghi himself laments a torrid record against Bayern Munich, losing all four managerial duels.

As if that’s not troubling enough, his side on the day conceded multiple times in each fixture.

Team News

Injury-hit Bayern Munich head into proceedings without several first-team stars. Jamal Musiala, Dayot Upamecano, and Alphonso Davies are unavailable for selection. On top of that, Manuel Neuer and Kingsley Coman are not fully fit and may not even make the bench.

Meanwhile, Inter cannot call upon the services of Denzel Dumfries, Piotr Zielinski, and Mehdi Taremi. They’re all out with injuries, while Kristjan Asllani must serve a one-game ban for accumulated yellow cards. Alessandro Bastoni should be ready despite sustaining a minor injury during Saturday’s 2-2 draw at Parma.

Bayern Munich vs Inter Potential Starting Line-ups

Bayern Munich (4-2-3-1): Urbig; Laimer, Kim, Dier, Guerreiro; Palhinha, Kimmich; Olise, Muller, Sane; Kane.

Inter (3-5-2): Sommer; Acerbi, Bisseck, Bastoni; Darmian, Calhanoglu, Frattesi, Mkhitaryan, Dimarco; Thuram, Martinez.

Bayern Munich vs Inter Prediction

Inter’s well-documented defensive resilience could be key to avoiding an unwanted result in Munich against one of Europe’s most formidable attacking sides. Therefore, Inzaghi’s potentially conservative approach shouldn’t catch fans by surprise.

A low-scoring affair could be in store, but Harry Kane & Co should take a first-leg lead into the return leg at Giuseppe Meazza.