Champions League analysis: Inter Milan vs Barcelona - Five key battles and score prediction

After a fabulous first leg in Spain, Inter Milan and Barcelona prepare for round two at the San Siro in Italy on Tuesday night (8pm kick-off).

The first leg was enthralling, captivating and exciting, ending in a pulsating 3-3 draw.

And here, Sports News Blitz writer Dejan Johal previews the second leg by assessing five key battles that may prove decisive in the heavyweight showdown.

A fantastic first leg

It was truly tremendous for fans of football to witness such a spectacle in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final between Barcelona and Inter Milan.

Both teams played some exceptional football in the draw in Spain, leaving fans desperate to now see the second leg in Milan, in the hope that both teams play the same kind of football.

One of the standout performances from the first leg was 17-year-old Lamine Yamal, who scored a wonderful goal as well as hitting the woodwork twice.

Yamal continues to amaze spectators and fans, as he won the key and highly talked about battle against Inter’s central defender, Alessandro Bastoni.

However, the man of the match went to Inter’s Denzel Dumfries, who managed to grab two goals and an assist, helping Inter take this draw to the San Siro for the highly-anticipated second leg.

Marcus Thuram vs Pau Cubarsi

Despite there being a lot of talk before the first leg about other players for the Italian side, one player that stood out for Inter was striker Marcus Thuram.

Thuram scored a wonderfully instinctive finish to give Inter Milan the lead inside 30 seconds.

This season, he has managed 14 goals in Serie A, and four goals in the Champions League, which leaves Inter fans hoping he can grab more in the second leg.

Up against Thuram is another teenage sensation for Barcelona, as 18-year-old Pau Cubarsi looks set to become one of the world’s best defenders.

The teenager from Barcelona’s academy has a 93.6% passing accuracy in La Liga, and also won 100 duels in the Spanish top-flight division.

As well as this, he has 38 successful ball recoveries and 14 completed clearances in the Champions League this season.

Despite struggling to handle Thuram in the first leg, Cubarsi has more than enough talent to manage him more effectively in this second leg, thus helping Barcelona potentially reach another European final.

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Denzel Dumfries vs Raphinha

After a man of the match performance in the first leg, Denzel Dumfries grabbed all the headlines for his stellar performance.

Dumfries grabbed himself two goals and an assist, as well as winning nine duels in the match which was the most.

The Dutchman has impressed both offensively and defensively, with an impressive 72% of his tackles and aerial duels won in Serie A.

To go along with this, he has six goals and two assists in the Serie A this season.

Barcelona’s Raphinha continues to show everybody why he has been heavily discussed for winning the Ballon d’Or this season.

The Brazilian managed to grab another assist in the first leg, as well as also delivering a thunderstrike which led to Barcelona’s third goal.

He continues to grab headlines as he has over 50 goal contributions this season in all competitions.

Raphinha will be hopeful that his Ballon d’Or worthy season is capped with Barcelona's fifth European trophy.

Federico Dimarco vs Lamine Yamal

The 27-year-old Italian Federico Dimarco has dazzled this season in an Inter Milan side that has impressed many.

Dimarco has four goals and seven assists in Serie A, with also an 83.9% pass accuracy.

Despite struggling at times defensively, as he has only won 43.6% of his duels, his attacking and forward play has been highly impressive, and will be key if Inter want to progress to the final.

Even though he didn’t receive the player of the match award in the first leg, all the headlines were taken once again by Lamine Yamal.

He completed the most dribbles in the match with six, as well as grabbing another goal, taking his Champions League tally to five for the season.

Yamal will pose a real threat to Dimarco and the Inter defence for the second leg, as his dribbling and movements are vital to his game.

This shows as he has completed 138 successful dribbles in La Liga alone and if he can have another game similar to the first leg, Barcelona will have a great chance to advance to the final.

Hakan Calhanoglu vs Dani Olmo

Turkey international Hakan Calhanoglu managed to grab an assist in the first leg, registering his third in the Champions League this season.

The central midfielder has 16 goal contributions this season in all competitions, along with a 90.3% pass accuracy in the Serie A.

He has been called “a revelation” for Inter Milan many times since his arrival for free in 2021, for his consistency and quality.

Dani Olmo has made 16 goal contributions for Barcelona this season since his £50million arrival from RB Leipzig last year.

Playing in both the number 10 position and occasionally out-wide, a key to Olmo’s game is his dribbling and technical ability.

In La Liga this year, the Spaniard has a dribble success rate of 63.6% as well as his passing accuracy being a highly impressive 82%.

Yann Sommer vs Wojciech Szcesny

Despite conceding an unfortunate own goal in the first leg, Inter Milan’s Yann Sommer has still had a highly impressive season between the sticks.

The experienced 36-year-old goalkeeper has made 79 saves in Serie A, and 44 saves in the Champions League.

One key strength of Sommer’s game is his distribution as he has over 85% passing accuracy in both Serie A and the Champions League this season, which will be key to bringing players like Lautaro Martinez and Marcus Thuram into the game more.

Despite only making 27 appearances in all competitions since his arrival to Barcelona in 2024, the 35-year-old Wojciech Sczesny has managed to keep 13 clean sheets in all competitions, showing everyone that he has been a great emergency signing for Barcelona.

The Pole has made 25 saves in the Champions League this season, helping Barcelona progress through to this semi-final.

Similar to Sommer, one of Szcesny’s strengths is his distribution as he has a pass accuracy of 88.1%, which could prove to be vital in breaking down Inter’s 3-5-2 formation in this second leg.

Score prediction: Inter Milan 1-3 Barcelona

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