Barcelona is very motivated to beat Inter and get revenge for the defeat at Mezza last week. Xavi and his boys want to defend their honor, but at the same time, they have to take all three points because right now, Inter has six points and Blaugrana only three. Both teams are coming off narrow wins this weekend, with the only difference being that Barca played at home, while Inter visited Sassuolo.
Preview
Barcelona (-250) was better than Celta at home, 1-0, in a match that saw them taking the lead early on and after that suffocating the guests, taking possession in the key moments, and decreasing the pace of the game. It was a bit dull for their fans, but Blaugrana took three points, which is the most important thing.
Four of the past five games they played were with under 2.5 goals, and eight of the last nine were with only one side netting; in the majority of casses, that would be Barca.
This team played five events at home, winning four and recording a draw. That single failure was against Rayo on the opening night, and after that, Xavi’s boys started a triumphant winning streak that still lasts. Also, it needs to be added that Barca allowed only one goal at home.
Inter (+625) won against Sassuolo on the road, which is a refreshment following shaky performances on the road this team posted throughout this campaign. Simone Inzaghi eased the pressure from the fans and the media with recent back-to-back successes.
Beating Barca at home is a great result for the Nerazzurri whose inconsistency and poor defensive effort are two of the biggest problems this year. The defense hasn’t been able to provide decent performances continuously, and right now, Inter has just three clean sheets in 12 competitive games.
Meanwhile, the offense, despite Lukaku’s absence, is doing a solid job, and we have to give credit to Lautaro, Dzeko and the rest of the forwards. Inter didn’t score only against Bayern Munich, which is why a majority of their performances end with three or more goals.
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Blaugrana has plenty of injured players, Christensen, Depay, Kessie, Kounde, Bellerin, and Araujo are out for this one.
Marcelo Brozovic, Cordaz, Correa, Dalbert, and Lukaku are out for the guests.
Head to Head Games
The first meeting ended 1-0 for Inter, but the officials robbed Barca, not calling for a clear penalty in the game’s final moments, when Dumfries handballed in the box. VAR officials should be punished because it was an obvious and easy decision. Inter scored through Calhanoglu in the second minute of the first half’s stoppage time and that was it from this event.
Prediction
Barcelona should win here, because they have a better team and play at home. We are aware that Blaugrana has multiple injury problems, yet that won’t be an excuse for them in case of a failure. Not winning this event would probably eliminate them from the race for the knockout stage. The odds on Barca’s win are -250. Those who want higher profits can go with Barca -1.5.
Pick: Barcelona wins -250
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Nikola Velickovic is a sports journalist who loves to write and read on all sports. Nikola contributes both news updates and functions as a sports breaking news writer at WagerBop.
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Email: nikola@wagerbop.com
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