Kicking off an intense autumn of Champions League action, Inter Milan host German giants Bayern Munich at San Siro on Wednesday.
The Group C rivals clash on the opening matchday, with Inter having suffered a galling defeat in the Milan Derby while their visitors were held for a second successive Bundesliga game.
After causing eventual finalists Liverpool plenty of problems in last season’s knockout stages, Inter have awaited their Champions League return eagerly, as they aim to go deeper into the competition this time around.
Since dethroned as champions of Italy by their city rivals – finishing close runners-up to Milan – the Nerazzurri also lost the Coppa Italia final to Juventus last term; ending Simone Inzaghi’s first year in the job on a sour note.
However, a bright to the 2022-23 campaign – in which Romelu Lukaku returned from his brief, unsuccessful stay in London – seemed to suggest brighter times lay ahead. They may well do so, but suffering two losses from their last three league games has put Inter on the back foot ahead of their latest European adventure.
Set to tackle Bayern, Barcelona and plucky outsiders Viktoria Plzen in a testing group over the coming weeks, Inzaghi’s men not only fell to a 3-1 defeat against their coach’s former club Lazio a fortnight ago, but then followed their subsequent win over Serie A new boys Cremonese with a chastening experience on Saturday.
Though they took the lead in the Derby della Madonnina, through a 21st-minute Marcelo Brozovic strike, Inter were ultimately outplayed by a more vibrant Milan side, who went on to record a 3-2 victory when the final whistle blew on a pulsating encounter at San Siro.
The Nerazzurri sit seventh, then, in the early Serie A standings – some four points off the summit – but even in Lukaku’s injury-enforced absence, they are the division’s second-top scorers and have won each of their last six league games as hosts.
With Barcelona to come in Group C, Julian Nagelsmann is desperate for a successful trip to Italy. “It’s a very demanding group full of challenges,” says the Bayern coach. “We have to be ready right from the start.” Inter, nine matches unbeaten at home, will be ready too.