Topic: UEFA Champions League 2023/24 Season - page 449. (Read 141853 times)

In fact, Inter Milan had a lot of goal opportunities, but they were easy for Atletico Madrid's goalkeeper to handle, so even though Inter Milan only won by one goal, it was enough to give Inter Milan confidence in facing the second leg at Atletico Madrid's home ground, I I also hope that Inter Milan will not play defensively in the second leg because Atletico Madrid could give them a surprise playing at home and avenge their defeat in today's match, which of course will be detrimental to them too.

I don't want to say that Inter Milan's goal was lucky because in my opinion Marko Arnautović was in the right position to score the goal, the result of this goal brought Inter Milan to win today's match and they have to prepare for the second leg match which of course Atletico Madrid is also preparing for. avenge today's defeat, at least Atletico Madrid must win on aggregate if they want to qualify for the next round, while Inter Milan is enough to hold Atletico Madrid to a draw and can qualify them for the group but that should not be a reference, Inter Milan must be able to win to qualify for the round next.

Napoli vs Barcelona

Home team Napoli has just sacked their manager Walter Mazzari and now they have Francesco Calzona as new manager so this is Calzona debut match and let see it later whether his debut match with Napoli will run well or not but Napoli has poor records from Barcelona because in the last 5 meetings Napoli never able to gets the winning results but actually the conditions about Napoli opponent Barcelona is not so different because Barcelona performance was decline in Laliga which make them have to give up for race title with Real Madrid but at least from recent match Barcelona can gets the winning result from Celta in Laliga

Although this is home match for Napoli but i highly doubt Napoli will being an the winner of this match because i am sure Napoli players still required more time to adapt with Calzona strategy even the bookmakers didn't placing Napoli as the favourite however Barcelona will losing some players today but i think it won't be affect to their performance because Barcelona has good depth of squad and for Napoli i didn't see any key players who got serious injured from them and apparently Napoli will playing with all of their best squad and Barcelona recent conditions is more good compared to Napoli besides that Bacelona has good records from Napoli too so my predictions is Barcelona will be the winner of this match and Barcelona has odds @2.42

I won't be giving any direct predictions for their next leg but I think inter millan would still out perform  Madrid in their own home, this season has been a good season Milan and I've seen them prove themselves in difficult time like this, they are even well ahead in their league and have lost quite a few matches, but Madrid on the other hand has not been on the best form this season to me.

Even from their match performance you would know that Madrid was not on form they couldn't land a shot on target for a full match, even playing defence to stop Milan from adding more goals, I was not impressed by the match, no competition from Madrid at all, I'm sure they would leave the arena for Milan.

1-0 aggregate might not seems good enough but honuour should be given where it's needed. Inter gave Atletico Madrid some home training they lack in that match. I mean, look at the match not a single shot on target Atletico Madrid had in that match, it means all there attempt to pressure Inter weren't going through and when they were playing offensive match aggressively and got no chance later, they draw back and play defensive to protect Inter from adding another goal so as to beat them when they play away match.

Atletico Madrid had a good line up of midfielder but there weren't good use IMO, they were just playing like some fun thing in the first half but it's obvious that Inter was prepared for them and the fact that they have lost just a single match out 25 rounds in their domestic league speak a lot for them, even the second leg they will trash Atletico and knock them out.

Napoli Vs Barcelona 1st leg
I just looked up to the flash scores today and discovered that there is a very nice fixture in the Champions League between the Barcelona of Spanish la Liga and Napoli or serie A. I tried my best to come up with a prediction but it wasn't actually an easy thing for me to do. But then I still have to make an attempt.

It is understandable that both teams are not in their good form this season. While Napoli is troubled by the exit of their last season coach, Barcelona is troubled by a the history of non performance of Xavi in the European competitions. Barcelona has a more stable team but Napoli has more threatful players and have more courage about the Champions League. I might not be able to predict tonight's score but I will predict that Napoli will qualify above Barcelona.

The second leg which will be held at the Wanda Metropolitano stadium will certainly be very exciting, the score of 1-0 in the first leg still does not determine whether Inter can qualify for the quarter-finals. Atletico will try to catch up with a one goal deficit and at the same time want to make a comeback to secure a ticket, but Atletico efforts will be difficult due to Inter Milan very strong defense. Inter have done the best job so far, it is difficult for Atletico to steal goal from Inter who are in their best form.

Arsenal's performance has improved in recent weeks in the EPL. I also predict that Arsenal will still be favorites and will win today's match against Porto. Porto might be able to play more confidently in front of their own supporters. But Arsenal will not be bothered by this. Arsenal will definitely remain focused and overwhelm the home team.

Arteta must have prepared a special strategy for today's match. And Arsenal will definitely aim to score as many goals as possible so they can play more comfortably in the second leg. But Porto must also be thinking the same thing. And indeed the results could be quite surprising. But I still favor Arsenal, who are guests in today's match at Porto headquarters.

Porto and Arsenal will play the first match of the Champions League 1/8 finals

Porto look like outsiders compared to Arsenal, who are in great form and showing impressive results. Arsenal have a winning streak with a big lead and they create a lot of chances. Arsenal's condition is crucial at the moment. I assume that Porto will have difficulties even playing on their field. Porto have experience in the Champions League playoffs, but Arsenal is a more interesting team. I expect Arsenal to dominate the game, even on the opponent's pitch. The Gunners are the favourites for this match.

The 1-0 aggregate is still not in the safe zone. Because it's possible that Atletico Madrid could turn things around in the second leg with a 2-0 result. But Inter Milan's performance really exceeded my expectations. Inter Milan really succeeded in overwhelming Atletico Madrid in that match. And I was quite amazed by the passes made by Inter Milan which showed that they are the team that is best at building teamwork on the field.

I think that in the second leg, Inter Milan will still be the favorite. But Atletico Madrid is one of the strongest clubs in Laliga. So the possibility for them to turn things around is also quite large.

Today's Napoli vs Barcelona match is the one I am most looking forward to. I rarely follow teams from Serie A, but I noticed that Napoli and Barcelona have had a decreasing level of consistency this season which makes matches difficult to predict.

Inter Milan's Agg 1 goal advantage cannot be used as a big capital to look forward to the second leg which will be played at home to Atlético Madrid.
There is a very big possibility for Atlético Madrid to turn things around.

In the first leg match, Inter Milan's performance was not optimal, there were many opportunities that the Inter Milan players were unable to take advantage of and this was quite detrimental for them.
All teams will show or give their best in the second leg, and with the quality of the two teams being almost the same, the competition will be very fierce. Regarding Agg 1 goal behind, I don't think it will be a significant problem for Atlético Madrid.

1-0 could be seen as a good advantage for Inter maybe but their job is still really difficult in the second leg. Because it is still a very close score and Atletico Madrid can equalize the conditions by scoring only one goal.

I won't be expecting Inter to play like Atletico Madrid did against them in the first leg. I think Inter would continue to prefer an attacking game. They are very productive this season so they shouldn't make a big change in their game plan for their own good. They already have a strong defense so they don't need to be afraid of playing like that in the rematch too. Because if they play too defensively Atletico Madrid can have more chances to punish them.

Inter will have to work harder when the visit Atlético Madrid's home for the second leg if they are to qualify for quarter finals. Yes they won with a slim scoreline which Atlético Madrid can reverse in the second leg. If they lose 2:0 in Spain inter Milan will be eliminated form the competition. It's going to be a tricky second leg which both team still have a chance to advance. Inter has to make sure they don't lose, they have to push even if it's for a draw in the second leg. But am sure Someone will want to win that game with a better scoreline to give his team a chance to advance forward.

Atletico madrid and intermilan are using the same strategies which are making the game was not entertaining. I meant that this kind of strategy was more focusin on to how to defense. If we are talking about the quality owned by these clubs and i must say that if intermilan had better quality compared to the atletico madrid.
These clubs are using the same strategy and this makes eventhing become very complicated. We can only know the result after we compare the quality from both of clubs. I meant we shall be focusing on the squad. Atletico madrid got zero goal attempts which have been proving that if intermilan fits to that strategy even better than before. Atletico madrid was losing with narrow score and i see that as nothing for this club. Intermilan can also beat atletico madrid in the second leg. The match between atletico madrid and intermilan were almost equal but intermilan has some payers that have higher qualities compared to the atletico madrid.
I must admit if intermilan is a very very strong team. Im still wondering why don't bookies put this club into the most favorite club to get UCL this season. Inter fully with old man but this club is able showing how to maximize the potential from its players.

Borussia Dortmund has earlier this season in their domestic league appeared like they were going to be a big threat to whosever was contending for the league title this season because they were really good with their performance and they did performed so well and in all their results they had excellent productivity but later they had a Little set back and after then it has appeared like they have been unable to recover from it,

Dortmund hasn't made much sales of their players as it usually be in their custom to sale off their good players, they have been more conservative with sales of players this season an I had taught it will help them go far both in their domestic league and probably in the champions league but then meet PSV who ahs been a good performing team too has aswell seem like a problem to them in the champions league because at this point it's looking like they will have to struggle to get pass their current stage in the champions league this season, they have had a draw now and the chances they will win the next is still in doubts as any one who wins the next between both of them, qualifies for the next round of the game.

Based on what inter Milan players showcased in this round of 16, show that they will still perform well in their second leg because they have good players in this season that is helping the team to continue improving, which we have seen good result from them in some other competition that is making the name of the team trending.

Despite the game did not go well the way inter Milan fans want it to go, but at last they secured a good goal that brought victory to them to be among the strong teams that won their game with good points.

Inter got the upper hand in the first leg with a close win, leaving room for a comeback.

If Inter manages to beat Athletico in both legs, it could be their year in the UCL. I think they have a strong team with a great fighting attitude. However, the second leg is likely to be intense. Atletico is a good team, so we'll have to see what happens in the second leg in Madrid. Atletico will need to attack more in the second leg, and Inter might be concerned about playing away in Spain.

Dortmund have a big chance of qualifying for the next round. In home matches the players of the teams are confident and can perform well. In yesterday's home match we saw PSV players play well. They did a lot of attacks. But Dortmund were very tactical. Their main aim was to strengthen the defence. After keeping the defense strong, Dortmund's players launched a counter attack.



This is the gameplay I expected from PSV. Because this two teams is not consider a weak teams at all.



This statistic clearly shows that the match was dominated by PSV's players. They played well it's true. The attacking players missed several chances. Otherwise, maybe PSV would have won.



Inter Milan and Atletico Madrid both had strong squads. So the match was also very competitive. However, I expected to see better performances from players in the forward lineup of Atletico Madrid. I think Atletico Madrid were tactically weak in this match. Otherwise, Atletico Madrid had the ability to draw the match.

Dortmund are not good enough to win titles in Bundesliga and Champions League recent seasons but they have good quality. They performed well in their group to be two eligible clubs and it shows their quality. PSV looks to be an opponent that does not outweighs Dortmund in quality and the first match shows it too. They are the host but only can equalize the match by a penalty and will face with big risk at Dortmund's home stadium.

Dominate a match at home and fail to get a win, it's a disadvantage of PSV before a second match in Germany. Dortmund actually achieved their target when playing in Netherlands and they will return home with a little advantage. It is not too much as if Dortmund lose at their home stadium, they will be knocked out by PSV. PSV don't need any big win, just a minimal win and because Dortmund also need a win to go next, PSV can play defensive and counter attacking in a next match. Dortmund must know that they have small advantage but also have risk to be lost in this pair.

The outcome of yesterday's game is still Favourable to Dortmund who have the chance to win the second leg in the own stadium. Their performance yesterday was really good and if they can play like that in their home they will definitely qualify

If Atletico wants to win the second leg in Spain, they need to improve their performance and see how they can easily penetrate Inter's defense, if not the match might end up not in their favor. Inter is very strong this season, and I believe that they will love to come to Spain for a win and not a draw because they are of more advantage of qualifying to the next round than Atletico.

Atletico is not that consistent these days with their matches and it might be a problem for them to be able to win Inter, because of this. Inter have being so consistent this season and we saw it in both domestic and European competition, so this gives Inter a better chance of winning Atletico in Spain, but I am not underestimating Atletico as football is full of surprises.