FC Salzburg lost 2-1 to Inter Milan on matchday three of the UEFA Champions League (UCL) to fall four points behind the top two, Real Sociedad and Inter, in Group D. If both those teams win this week, the Austrians will make a UCL group-stage exit for the fourth time in the last five campaigns.
There’s optimism that they will avoid that fate though, as Gerhard Struber’s men responded to that latest UCL defeat with three straight victories to get some momentum back in their campaign and return to the top of the Austrian Bundesliga in pursuit of a successful title defence. And despite losing their last two home UCL matches, those defeats remain Salzburg’s only losses across their last nine games at the Red Bull Arena (W5, D2) to go with a strong recent home record (W4, D2, L1) against Italian clubs, raising hopes of extending their stay in this year’s competition.
Last season’s finalists Inter followed up their H2H win with back-to-back league victories to maintain their lead at the top of Serie A and extend their unbeaten competitive sequence (W6, D1). Stretching that run further with a fourth European H2H triumph will propel them into a third successive knockout phase in this competition, and the Nerazzurri will feel they have history on their side, having won nine of their last ten meetings with Austrian outfits (L1).
Simone Inzaghi’s charges are yet to lose an away encounter this term (W5, D1) and are likely to carry the confidence of four consecutive wins from that sequence into Wednesday’s contest. The visitors have usually excelled on their continental travels too, losing just one of their last eight UCL away trips (W4, D3).
Players to watch: Karim Konaté warmed up for this fixture with a brace over the weekend for Salzburg as he searches for a first-ever UCL goal. By contrast, Lautaro Martínez isn’t new to scoring in continental games and might fancy being on the road, as eight of his 11 UCL goals for Inter have come away from home, including their last such strike this campaign.
Hot stat: Six of Inter’s last nine away UCL matches – excluding neutral venues – have seen exactly two total goals.
