Inter Milan coach ready for Barcelona challenge – ‘We’ll go there with a lot of respect, but without fear’ | OneFootball

Inter Milan are set to take on Barcelona at Montjuic on Wednesday in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League semifinals.

Not more than two weeks ago, Inter Milan were deemed as a formidable opponent for Barcelona due to their defensive solidity and a fast-paced attack.

However, since then, things have fallen off a cliff for Inter Milan, who are coming on the back of three consecutive losses, with their most recent defeat coming against AS Roma earlier today.

Inzaghi talks Barcelona ahead of UCL tie

Speaking to the press after the Roma defeat, Inter Milan coach Simone Inzaghi talked about the team’s poor form and the upcoming challenge against Barcelona.

“This is football, this week we come from three defeats that hurt us, but the team always tries,” he said after the loss to Roma (h/t Diario SPORT).

“The three tough defeats, we’re not used to it. Calendar, absences, throw-ins, penalties… We are living in a bit of a strange time, but it doesn’t make sense to talk about this now,” he added.

Simone Inzaghi needs to find a fix quickly (Photo by Alessandro Sabattini/Getty Images)

Inzaghi went on to highlight the importance of thinking forward, especially with a Barcelona game coming up next.

Contrary to Inter, the Catalans are coming on the back of an excellent run of form, with the team recently securing the Copa Del Rey by beating Real Madrid in the final.

Inzaghi, though, believes that there is no reason to fear, even though Inter Milan will give Barcelona full respect.

“We need to talk about ourselves, recover our energy, because in two days we fly to Barcelona. We didn’t need yesterday’s game to understand what kind of team they are; we will go there with a lot of respect, but without fear,” he said.

Finally, the Inter Milan coach highlighted the importance of reacting positively against Barcelona, as they look to salvage their season.

“We lacked clarity and we have to recover it. We have to react to this week. We will have to recharge our physical and mental energy, and analyse today’s match to know what to do better. Now it would be too easy to talk about other things,” he concluded.