Inter have their penultimate Champions League group stage match against a familiar foe, SL Benfica. Benfica have had a difficult Champions League experience this season, finding themselves bottom of Group D on zero points- with only one goal scored while conceding seven. Inter will travel to the Estádio da Luz looking to get one step closer to finishing first in Group D, having already secured qualification for the Round of 16.
Earlier this season in the reverse fixture, Inter was able to sneak past their Portuguese opposition in a 1-0 victory thanks to a goal from Marcus Thuram in the sixty-second minute. Despite having just slightly less of the ball, Inter accumulated 3.81 expected goals through twenty-one shots, eight on target. The Nerazzurri can expect a tough match, as the Estádio da Luz is not an easy ground to come to. With the stadium behind them, Benfica will want to get the win and push to qualify for the Europa League.
Last season, Inter were drawn against Benfica in the Champions League semi-finals, progressing past As Águias 5-3 on aggregate. Goals from Nicolò Barella and a penalty from Romelu Lukaku helped Inter secure the win in Portugal, although Benfica had a higher expected goal total with more shots than the Nerazzurri.
According to SkySport Italy, Benfica is predicted to line up as follows: (4-2-3-1) Trubin; Aursnes, António Silva, Otamendi, Morato; João Neves, Florentino; Di María, Rafa Silva, João Mário; Tengstedt. Alexander Bah, Gonçalo Guedes and David Neres are ruled out through injury.
According to SkySport Italy, Inter is predicted to line up as follows: (3-5-2) Audero; Bisseck, de Vrij, Acerbi; Darmian, Frattesi, Asllani, Klaassen, Carlos Augusto; Arnautović, Alexis Sánchez. Alessandro Bastoni, Benjamin Pavard and Denzel Dumfries are all out through injury.
Benfica-Inter is set to kick off on Wednesday, November 29 at 21:00 CET / 15:00 EST.
