Barcelona vs Inter Milan: Three key talking points ahead of UCL semi-final first leg | OneFootball

It has been six years since the last time FC Barcelona found themselves in the semi-finals of the UEFA Champions League, and for a club of this stature, it doesn’t make for good reading. However, all that is in the past now, and history beckons Hansi Flick’s men.

The German coach and his team wrapped up their second title of the season, the Copa del Rey, by defeating Real Madrid in tremendous fashion in extra time, giving the players a much-needed boost in their push for a historic treble this season.

In La Liga, Barcelona lead Real Madrid by 4 points, and with an El Clásico still to be played, Flick’s men would be confident of wrapping up the title sooner rather than later. In the Champions League, the club is three good games away from lifting a title that has eluded them since 2015.

At this point, it is almost impossible to make an argument against Barcelona winning it all this season, and with this in mind, here are three talking points from Sempre Barca ahead of La Blaugrana’s important semi-final first leg clash against Inter Milan at the Lluís Companys Olympic Stadium.

1: Barcelona vs Inter Milan — A tale of contrasting fortunes

Hansi Flick’s men are coming into this tie on the back of a resounding win over their arch rivals in the Copa del Rey final, while Inter Milan, who were in the reckoning for a treble just around a week ago, have lost three games in a row, not scoring a single goal.

While the momentum will be with Flick’s men, Inter are wounded and would be keen to prove a point and fight tooth and nail to lift the only realistic trophy they have remaining this season. As they say, it’s a wounded tiger that usually attacks the fiercest!

FC Barcelona need to be near perfect against a solid Inter team to beat them across the two legs. Ultimately, this is a game that would have to be a battle between Barcelona’s attack and Inter’s defense, and let’s wait and see how the first leg plays out.

2: How is Hansi Flick going to manage fatigue?

The emotional win over Real Madrid on the weekend came at a cost as the Barcelona players looked completely destroyed at the end of it. Players like Pedri and Ferran Torres had to come off, despite the game being on the line.

Fatigue is surely a factor that is affecting Flick’s men at the moment, with the intensity seemingly dropping in the second half of games in recent weeks, but if there is one thing to be said, it is that Barcelona will surely be emotionally fresh.

Inter Milan, meanwhile, have to deal with both physical and emotional fatigue, and that might not do them any good. Flick has to make decisions on who he starts and who he rests for this game, and it remains to be seen if he makes any changes.

The one good thing for Barcelona is that both Lewandowski and Alejandro Balde are expected to be fit for the return leg, and thus, if they can find the energy to get through today’s game, it could hold them in good stead by the time the return leg at the San Siro comes about.

Barcelona star Lamine Yamal celebrates after winning the Copa del Rey. (Photo by Fran Santiago/Getty Images)

3: All eyes on Lamine Yamal

With the highly anticipated Barcelona vs Inter Milan clash on the horizon, all eyes will surely be on Lamine Yamal, who has been making plenty of headlines lately. After a sensational performance against Real Madrid, the Spaniard made it to the pre-match presser alongside Flick and was quite bullish about his side’s chances.

Lamine, in his fleeting career so far, has already shown that the biggest of occasions bring the best out of him, and Barcelona find themselves in uncharted territory, making it to the Champions League semi-finals after what feels like ages.

One can say with a certain amount of certainty that Lamine Yamal will be driven more than ever to put in a memorable display and lead his team to the Champions League final for the first time since 2015, and the whole world will be watching him.

Lamine at 17 is doing things that other players in their prime can only dream of, and it is a blessing for Barcelona to have him in their ranks. If he puts in a solid display against Inter, his stocks only keep going higher, and let’s wait and see how it plays out.